You Belong To Me
by VampireBasket
Summary: The people of Kazekuni have declared war on the evil land of Chitani. As is tradition, a neighbouring village will be chosen to volunteer medics and squires to assist the warriors on their way, so when Emiko is assigned as medic to a peculiar red-haired warrior, her world is turned upside down as they march out to war. More detail inside, AU, Rated for language, and extreme fluff.
1. The Warriors Arrive

**A/N: **New story – oop oop! This storyline came to me in a dream believe it or not, so it's quite different from my others...

Things to know about this fic, it's AU, but they still have chakra. It's just in a more medieval time setting and doesn't follow the anime storyline at all. Human Sasori, but he still uses puppets to fight etc.

I also have a new OC, as you'll find out if you manage to maintain interest past the authors note! Just adding a bit of variety in my life, thrilling as it is… I'm going to flit between POVs in this, since I want to write in first person and after discovering with a bit of planning that at times it'll work better in third, I decided to change it around. So I guess I just gotta deal with it.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto or any of its characters because, as much as I try to bribe Kishimoto into giving it to me, he's not budging. So for now, it's just the OCs that are mine.

* * *

**The Warriors arrive**

The mayor was a plump man, who enjoyed showing off and playing snob almost as much as he enjoyed eating. Though it was close sometimes.

Today was a showing off day. He had the entire population of citizens gathered in the square outside our small town hall of Ookiimura, which ironically translated into 'Large Village'. Wishful thinking, if you ask me.

Two days prior to this ceremonial meeting, a similar string of events had occurred, in which he had announced with great enthusiasm and pride that warriors from our closest neighbouring city, Kazekuni, would be passing through. The crowd had responded with cheers and gleeful yelps, as it was seen as a great honour to house a squadron of warriors that were on route to war, and an even greater honour to have your own citizens selected to be chosen as medics and squires.

That's where I came into it. Known as the keenest medic in the Westlands, I possessed medical skills that rivalled that of the most famous doctor in the Midlands, Tsunade of Konaha. I, however, was not so well known.

My family were all involved in medicine in some way. My younger sister, Mina, was a practicing medic with, like myself, though she had no particular speciality. My mother worked away a lot as a poison's specialist, and when she was at home she'd often leave us to provide for ourselves as she passed the time in bars with single guys, or stopping over at her friends' houses, so we rarely saw her. My father died during a civil war, a few months before Mina was born and I was too small to remember.

But Mina and I were thick as thieves. With 7 years between us you wouldn't have thought siblings could be so close. I guess you could say it was more a mother-daughter relationship we shared, since I had been the one to bring her up for most of her life. Our mother wasn't what you'd describe as a maternal woman.

I glanced down at the little brunette beside me, unable to keep the smile from my face as her dark hair swished in the breeze while she watched the Mayor on his platform ahead. My expression soon turned sour though at the thought of our possible separation, all for the sake of someone else's war.

I had never met anyone from Kazekuni, and I didn't particularly care for their antics in war with some far off land that no one really liked anyway. Conveniently named the valley of blood, Chitani was known as a bloodthirsty people, whose leader was getting too big for his boots and had begun harassing and invading several smaller towns in the East.

'People of Ookiimura, I thank you for your time and patience.' The Mayor's patronising voice pulled me back to the present, and I squinted into the distance at the short and stout leader. 'Our neighbours shall be arriving extremely shortly, and I would expect you all to treat them with the utmost respect and honour. They will quite quickly be filling up the hotels and inns we have available, though should we run out of rooms, some of you will be required to share your own accommodation with our guests.'

There were a few disapproving murmurs from the crowd, but the majority remained silent, waiting for him to redeem himself.

'The last opportunity to sign the lists for volunteer squires and medics will be at 6pm tonight in the town hall, where a grand celebratory gathering will be thrown to welcome the warriors. I'm sure that I do not need to remind you that if an insufficient number of volunteers are listed, we will be selecting by force. That will be all, now please continue with your business as usual. Thank you.'

I scoffed and rolled my eyes. So much for subtlety. Of course, I had already written mine and Mina's names down, it just wasn't worth the hassle if we didn't. All I was clinging to now was the hope that there were either too many names down for the warriors or that we were simply not selected.

I guided my sister through the maze of people and when we finally pushed out for air at the back of the crowd, I had to chuckle. 'It always amazes me how many people fit into that square…'

Mina made a noise of acknowledgement but kept her head down, fringe hanging down over her eyes. We strolled through the streets, the windows shimmering and glowing in the early morning sunlight. I continued to chatter, lightly commenting on pointless on goings around us, trying to keep her mood up with the sinking feeling that I was failing.

When Mina finally met my gaze, her eyes were clouded with worry. 'Koko?' It was a nickname that had stuck from when she was younger and unable to fully pronounce my full name, 'Emiko'. I thought it was sweet.

'Yes, Mina?'

'How long will the war last?' She whispered, her voice low enough so that only I could hear it.

I gave her a sad smile. 'I couldn't say, Mimi. Not long, I hope.'

She nodded and dipped her head again. I wracked my brain for something I could say to comfort her, coming up blank every time.

'War is evil.' She muttered as we paused outside our apartment door and I fumbled with the keys.

'There is no evil in the world, Mina. Only bad people who want to create evil.' I quoted, remembering the saying from an old man who used to live a few blocks away.

'Well then, people are evil.' She huffed stubbornly, crossing her arms over her chest and turning her deep purple eyes up to mine. Her hair and eyes were darker than mine, which I often envied. My mousey brown locks were dull and boring, falling loosely over one eye while I kept the other, longer side wrapped in a tight braid that hung to my shoulder. At work, I'd pull the main body of my hair up into to spikey buns, but at home I usually left it free and flowing, though even at full length ending just above my shoulders, it had nothing on Mina's, which, when loose, fell to her lower back.

Inside was colder than usual, which I refused to look at as a bad omen. Lighting a match, I flipped it onto the old log fire in our tiny living room and turned back to Mina. 'Why don't you put the kettle on, Mimi? We'll have some tea and I can make some of your favourite miso soup!'

Thankfully, her face brightened slightly at this, and she skipped into the kitchen to fill the kettle as I'd suggested. A few moments later though, she returned, her face falling. 'We're out of Miso Paste! Mom used the last of it yesterday for dinner and must have forgotten to stock up…'

'That's alright, we can nip out and get some in a minute.' I grinned, and she perked up again.

'I can go get it now! Oh please, Koko! I won't be long I promise!'

Mina knew I was wary about her going out alone, but on this occasion, I sighed in defeat. 'Fine, but if you're not back in ten minutes–'

'I will be! I promise! See you in a bit!' She scurried out the door in a flurry, forgetting to ask for the money and having to shuffle back in sheepishly while I fished in my pocket for some change.

When she had gone I moved to stand by the window, gazing out into the distance at the surrounding mountains.

Ten minutes came and went. Then another ten. I tried to control my pacing but the million different scenarios flashing through my mind refused to cease even slightly, until finally I could bare it no more.

Grabbing my keys and stuffing them into a pack I kept buckled at my hip, I hurried out into the street and around two corners to the market place.

The market place was packed, which was at first I thought was unusual, until I saw several built up men pass by that I had never seen before, and I remembered our expected guests. _Great, that'll make it much harder to find her with all these people…_

'Emiko!' I spun round at the sound of my name, eyes scanning the crowd until they landed on a familiar face. It was Mrs. Honaka from two blocks down. 'Emiko! Quickly, Mina has got herself into a bit of trouble with the newcomers…'

She barely had time to finish her sentence when I arrived in her face, panic rising in my throat as I questioned the old woman. 'Where is she? What happened?'

'I'll take you to her, I think one of the men though she was pushing in and got angry with her…' She spoke quickly as we walked, far too slowly for my liking. 'Over there!'

She pointed to a giant, burly man who looked to be in his late 30s. He was scowling into the small group of people that had gathered around, and it was only when I got closer that his voice reached my ears.

'I am disgusted by it. Such a lack of respect and from such a young member, which begs the question, what exactly are the elders of this village teaching their young in this place?' He spat, his face contorting into a glare as he arrogantly threw his weight around.

His arm moved sluggishly as he shifted, as though dragging something behind him, and when I managed to squeeze my way in front of the last layer of people, my whole body froze as I stared.

He had Mina. His giant, grizzly hand clutching her around the back of her neck as he swung her forward and let her fall face down into the dust. Several people gasped and frowned at the scene, though no one dared move as she sputtered and scrabbled to sit up.

'I believe you deserve your punishment now, little girl!' He snarled, looming over her and about to make another grab for her neck.

Without thinking, I darted forward, squishing my body in between them and glaring with all my might at the beast before me.

'Don't you dare raise your filthy hands to her!' I spat venomously, my feral hatred blatantly clear in my voice as I fumed.

He seemed somewhat taken aback momentarily, but gained composure soon enough to shove me backwards easily so I landed clumsily on my sister. Now he was really pissed.

'I think I should teach you a few manners too, you little bitch!' He roared, practically snapping off his belt and wrapping it once around his fist, drawing his arm back threateningly.

I span myself round so my back was to that monster, curling around Mina in a desperate attempt to protect her. I heard him heave and his arm shot forward, the belt whooshing through the air at the movement, and I squeezed my eyes tight shut as braced myself for the searing pain. But nothing came.

There was a sudden eruption of whisperings among the crowd and I slowly convinced myself to peek back over my shoulder.

Someone else was there, standing between us! I flickered my gaze upwards to the back of the strangers head. Bright red hair that I definitely did not recognise. Above his head his arm was extended, his fingers wrapped easily around the end of the belt that would have inevitably hit us had he not intercepted.

The monster started to speak, clearly as shocked as everyone else. 'What the hell, man…'

'I'm not sure if the right person is being taught the manners here, Ryuuga.' The stranger's voice was strangely calm as he dropped his hand casually, still clutching the end of the belt. With a quick tug, he yanked it from the giant's hand and threw it unceremoniously at his feet, and without another word, turned and walked away, the crowd parting incredulously as he passed through them.

I stared dumbly after him, unable to move until Mina's small hand shook my shoulder. 'Koko, let's go home…'

Her voice was quiet and weak, and my heart broke at the feeble sound of it. Her cheeks were tearstained and her eyes were scared. I scooped her up hurriedly and ran face down back through the streets to the safety of our apartment.

I placed her down on the couch gently, sinking to the floor as soon as she had left my arms.

I felt the cushions move against my back as Mina shifted closer, and I sighed and let my eyelids slide close. 'Are you alright, Mina?' I murmured softly.

'I'm so sorry…' Her voice wobbled as a tear slid off her cheek and landed on my shoulder. 'I didn't mean to offend him, I tripped and he thought I was pushing in front of him and–'

'Shh…' I reached back to stroke her hair, throwing her a reassuring smile. 'You're alright now. You don't have to worry.'

* * *

**A/N: **So, who can guess who saved them? :O You'll just have to wait and see!

Yeah, the tension is killing you, I know.

Bright red hair… Now WHO could that be in a SasoriXOC fic? :P

Much more happening in the next chapter, the welcome gathering, sneaking out through windows, the list of medics and squires being announced… I'm not usually this talkative so I suppose I'll shut up now and let you leave. But only if you come back!

Till the next time. And there _will be_ a next time ;)


	2. Welcome Gathering

**A/N: **Hey ho! So there may be a few times where the characters are OOC, but it fits the story so I'm sure you'll get over it.

Ps: If you like Sasuke, you probably won't like me. I hate that guy…

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**Welcome Gathering**

I had already decided I hated the warriors of Kazekuni, so I really detested the fact that not only had I put my name down as a medic, but also that there was a mandatory welcome gathering in the town hall tonight.

I hadn't really made much effort with an outfit, pulling on a plain, cream coloured alter neck dress and some light brown strappy, wedge heels. Mina had chosen a dark purple dress that matched her eyes brilliantly, and black ballet pumps, since she was only 12, so I refused to let her wear heels just yet. I was relieved to find that the earlier events of that afternoon had not darkened her spirits when it came to a village party, and as she skipped along beside me toward the designated building I had to smile.

There were four doormen outside to greet people, each with their own endless looking guest list. I gave our names moodily and after a moment, we got the nod to enter. The hall was bustling, filled to the brim with brightly dressed people that almost hurt my eyes. The old bar in the corner of the hall had been polished to within an inch of its life and opened as though it were new.

I had timed our arrival so that it was late enough to miss the Mayors irritatingly and undoubtedly vain speech about how thankful and lucky we were to have such honoured guests choose our 'humble' village.

Mina tugged on my hand and nodded at a few of her friends standing a little way away from us, and I grinned at her in approval. She squeezed my hand lightly in response, before pottering happily over to greet them.

I rolled my eyes after her, amazed at how easily she got over things. Sighing, I figured I may as well make the most of the free bar, and headed towards it eagerly. But as my eyes danced across the groups of people hovering in the corner with freshly poured drinks in their hands, I froze as something caught my attention. Red hair…

Gulping hard, desperately trying to swallow my pride, I forced my feet to move forward until I was standing right behind him. I shuffled to the side so he was on my right where I could see his face better, and opened my mouth reluctantly.

'Erm, excuse me?'

The stranger tilted his head slightly, moving his hazels eye to gaze at me lazily in response.

'Erm…' I struggled to form a sentence, not really knowing how to begin. 'Are you, I mean, earlier this afternoon… Erm, was it you that–'

'You're welcome.' He deadpanned, moving his eyes to stare at his drink in front of him.

My temper bubbled at being dismissed so easily. _Now who needs some manners?_ 'Well thanks I guess…'

I was about to turn and stalk off in a huff, when a voice from my left surprised me.

'Emiko, huh?'

My head whipped round and I was met by the cool, piercing onyx gaze of Sasuke Uchiha. _Bloody wonderful._

'S-Sasuke?' I stuttered, completely shocked by his appearance all of a sudden. I had been at high school with him, and he drove me crazy. Not in the way that he drove most girls crazy, no, I actually hated him with everything in me. Two years ago, at 17, he had mysteriously disappeared from the village without a trace. The mayor had concluded his vanishing as a strange occurrence, but later we found out that he had been spotted in other nearby towns, so he basically just left. 'What are you doing here?'

He threw me his old trademark smirk that I was _thrilled_ to see hadn't changed. Please note the sarcasm. 'That's no way to speak to a guest of Ookiimura!'

My eyes bulged. 'Y-you're one of the warriors?! From Kazekuni?'

The stranger behind me shifted, suddenly interested in our conversation. 'You know each other?' He questioned, eyes boring into me almost accusingly. 'Another ex-girlfriend perhaps?'

I snorted in disgust. 'No.'

'I used to live here.' The Uchiha shrugged casually, turning his attention back to me. 'You haven't changed much.'

'Neither have you.' I scoffed. Then, after a moment, a thought popped into my head. 'When you left, why didn't you tell anyone you were leaving?'

'Aw why, did you miss me?'

'Not even slightly.' _Dick_. 'Was kind of a selfish move though… Lots of people were really worried.'

He shrugged again, completely unfazed. 'This town was dull. Nothing ever happened.'

'Right.' I supressed the urge to roll my eyes and made a move to leave, but Sasuke caught my arm, ignoring my expression of loathing at his touch.

'Didn't you want a drink?'

I blinked. That had been my initial intention… 'Not really.' I lied awkwardly, trying to struggle out of his grip.

'Oh come on, let me buy you a drink Emmy…'

'It's _Emiko_.' I ground out, my temper beginning to rise again. 'Let go, Sasuke. This isn't high school.'

He snorted immaturely. 'What, you're not still pissed about that are you?'

We continued to bicker until I finally agreed to let him buy me a drink provided he removed his hand from my arm immediately, which he eventually did, albeit reluctantly. He then managed to force me to sit on one of the stools, earning several of my best death glares and I shifted on the seat. Until then, I hadn't noticed the red head beside me had been watching the entire time, the corners of his mouth turning up slightly in amusement.

'Glad someone's enjoying themselves.' I snapped, unable to hold back on the harsh tone. Oops. I winced at my own voice and waited for him to get angry and make a scene, but he only seemed more amused at my sarcasm.

'So I see you've met my comrade then, Emmy.' The Uchiha commented, retaining the irritating nickname and sneering when my eyebrow twitched.

'Not really.' I muttered, accepting the drink off the bartender who seemed to appear out of nowhere. 'What is this?'

'It's a special concoction they have in KazeKuni.' Sasuke cut in, nodding at the man who then scurried off to serve other waiting customers. 'It's to _die_ for.'

I sniffed the rim suspiciously, deciding against it and placing it back on the counter.

Sasuke frowned and opened his mouth, presumably about to throw me some other witty comment about my attitude, when two girls came charging forward, instantly demanding his attention. I recognised them from high school, but didn't care enough to try to remember their names. I shoved the drink a little further away since he was distracted and slid off the stool to make my escape.

'See you around, Emiko.'

I glanced back briefly to meet the amused hazel gaze I was being pinned by. 'Thanks again, umm…'

'Sasori.' He finished for me. I simply nodded and all but ran from the scene. _Well, that wasn't awkward at all._

It wasn't long before Sasuke managed to seek me out again, despite my best attempts to avoid him, I'd even resorted to sitting in the toilets for well over ten minutes at one point, so I was pretty pissed off that my efforts had failed. He had clearly had a lot more to drink since the encounter at the bar, and was now swaying slightly as he stood in the doorway, trapping me outside on the small French balcony, which apparently was not a good hiding place.

'Why don't you get the hint, Sasuke? Back off!' I growled, backing up until I was leaning against the railing, though the Uchiha was still only inches from me on the short platform.

'I saw that you signed up to the medics list, E-mi-ko,' he sang the syllables in my name annoyingly, ignoring my warning glares.

'Yeah, so?' I snapped, seriously regretting putting my damn name on that damn list.

'Sooooo…' He grinned at me, an arrogant, cocky grin that made me want to slap it right off his stupid face and into next week. He wobbled forward one step, placing his hands on the balcony railings on either side of my waist.

'Bastard…' I mumbled, my head recoiling into my neck as he leaned closer, sneering down at my burning cheeks, which was actually due to my rage, not embarrassment as he clearly saw it.

'You want me, Emiko…' His breath was hot and smelled with unbearable strength of alcohol, but when he shifted again so that our noses almost touched, that was the final straw.

Unable to hold back, my fist collided with his gut sending him flailing backwards drunkenly, and without a second though, I swung myself over the railing and dropped to the floor, landing on my feet with more grace than I had expected. I raced along the back of the building and darted around the corner in between the town hall and another tall construction, hovering in the dim lamplight to peer back around the wall as I strained my hearing for footsteps.

When I was satisfied he hadn't bothered to follow me, I let out a breath and my shoulders slumped in relief.

'So, do you always treat village guests with such high courtesy or are we just lucky?'

The voice came out of nowhere and I jumped violently in surprise. Spinning around, my eyes landed on that instantly recognisable red hair, and I groaned inwardly. 'Yeah… it's a bad habit I'm trying to break. Can I help you?'

Sasori's lips curled ever so slightly into a smirk, though I had to squint to be sure. 'Not particularly.'

Biting down on my tongue to distract myself from a sarcastic retort, I gave the sweetest smile I could manage in this situation. 'Any specific reason as to why you're lurking outside in the shadows in between buildings?'

He raised an amused eyebrow. 'I could ask you the same thing.'

I opened my mouth to _politely_ inform him that it was none of his business, but he spoke again before I could, his voice taking on a lethargic monotone.

'Does this village have to drag everything out?'

'What do you mean?' I frowned, confused. The warriors had only arrived this morning, and were leaving first thing tomorrow, so they hadn't had a chance to 'drag anything out'.

'Well I figured we'd have selected workers already and left this…' He pursed his lips trying to find the right word, but upon seeing my warning glare he settled with, 'place.'

I blinked slowly, still not fully understanding what he was getting at and deliberately choosing to ignore the fact that he referred to the medics and squires as 'workers'.

He sighed harshly and rolled his hazel irises in exasperation at my blank expression, reaching out to grab my wrist. He tugged it and I stumbled forward in surprise, head almost crashing into his chest. Before I could even begin to form words of protest he was already stalking off in the direction of the main doors, leading me back inside.

As soon as we entered the hall, the arrogant redhead disappeared into a sea of people. Confused, I sighed and went about looking for Mina.

To say I was relieved when the Mayor finally climbed up on stage to announce the departures would be a massive understatement. The room fell into a deathly silence instantly, and the temptation to drop a coin at this moment was overpowering, but I resisted.

Mina scooted closer so that her arm was tucked into my side as our leader opened a folded piece of paper that he had produced from his jacket pocket.

'Okay, so here is the moment you have all been waiting for. I trust everyone is packed and ready to leave in the morning.' He paused and allowed the crowd to nod and mumble in response. 'Excellent. I'll waste no more time then and get right to it.'

'Thank God.' I heard someone breathe out behind me and to the left, a voice I noted as Sasori's, and I rolled my eyes at his impatience.

'First off, the medics. Assigned to Squad 1 shall be as follows.' A string of names were reeled off, none of which even vaguely sounding like mine or Mina's. Next came Squad two. 'So for this one, there will be one medic per warrior, since this is the smallest squad in the platoon with just 23 men.' I cocked a head, only mildly interested in the squad sizes. I had figured it'd be one medic per person in every squad anyway, but apparently not in Squad one. 'So joining squad two will be…'

Again with the list of names, I was just about to give up paying attention when my hearing prickled. 'Rengé Junika, Emiko Kiitana and Mina Kiitana. You will be assigned an individual when you have officially joined the squad.'

Everything else after that was a blur. I tried to think positively that Mina and I were at least on the same squad, but the fact that they were dragging the 12 year old off into a war shocked and appalled me. It was true that I had signed her name myself, but I had never in my wildest dreams thought they'd actually pick her!

Mina's small voice broke me out of my trance and I let out a sharp breath that I hadn't realised I'd been holding. 'Huh?' I glanced down at her.

'I said it'll be alright. We're on the same team.' She gave me a tiny smile that made my heart swell. I nodded quickly, forcing myself to smile back, trying to look reassuring. If my expression displayed any of my inner turmoil, she didn't let it show.

_So that's it then,_ I thought resignedly. _We're going to war._

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**A/N: **I'm very glad I ended this chapter there, because my bum is numb beyond belief from sitting in this position for so long.

I also have mega pins and needles in my foot. Should be fun trying to walk on that in a minute.

Wish me luck, over and out.


	3. The Healer's Secret Jutsu

**A/N: **I'm starting to really get into writing Emiko, she's my newest OC, and I've been practicing with drawing her on Deviantart a lot, so writing her character helps me understand her better.

I'm still disclaiming, I just can't be bothered to write it… You know the drill.

* * *

**The Healer's secret Jutsu**

'I will not heal him.' I replied, almost casually. I was stating a fact that I was not going to be swayed on. Not. One. Inch.

'B-but he has requested _you_ personally! Look I don't make the rules here, I'm just doing my job and–'

'I know that, and I'm not disputing the rules or your job. I'm simply saying, if you assign me to Sasuke Uchiha, I will not heal him.' Of course, it was just my luck to end up on the squad that housed that bastard. I stared at the fumbling man before me, weighing him up in my head. He was young, possibly only one or two years older than myself, so I did feel a bit sorry for him, but only a tiny bit.

I let him fumble awkwardly a few more minutes before leaning over the desk between us, catching his eye and staring him down. 'Assign me someone else and we have no problem. _Anyone _else.'

So that's how I ended up here, grumbling and glaring across the room at the red-haired nuisance who was making it his life's goal to piss me off.

'If the wind changes, your face will stick like that, you know.' Sasori stated matter-of-factly.

I didn't even bother with a response, far too involved in my own downward spiral of self-pity. Why did I have to say anyone?

The squire who had been teamed with us was a boy my age, named Kichiro, who I knew vaguely from high school but had never really spoken to before. He seemed nice enough so far, but as his head cocked from side to side to glance between Sasori and myself, a small smirk began to form across his mouth.

'Don't you start as well!' I snapped irritably.

He held his hands up in the air, smirk settings on full power. 'I'm saying nothing. You guys obviously have some weird issues going on.'

'I don't know how you could form issues with someone after only ever speaking to them twice.' Sasori muttered, half to himself as he unravelled his sleeping bag in the otherwise bare room of the hotel.

We were two days from Ookiimura, and I had yet to be given a spare second to wander off and look for my sister. I still had no idea who she had been assigned to, though I hoped her subject was better and far less irritating than mine. Since there had been no fighting as of yet, there had been nothing for me to do medically, but Sasori somehow always found something for me to work at, despite my refusing several jobs he gave me.

'You're lucky you aren't getting paid for this, I'd have docked your wages so far off the scale by now if you were…' He had mumbled late last night after I had refused for the third time to fill up our water supply. I was here to heal, not fetch water.

Of course I had snapped back a sarcastic comment that I _should_ be getting paid for this with all the crap I was putting up with. I suppose in a way I was actually lucky, in the sense that Sasori didn't seem to get too angry at anything I did or said. Not yet anyway.

The hotel we were staying in tonight was smaller than the one from yesterday, but it was much cleaner. I shuffled down further into my sleeping back and rolled onto my side, facing away from Sasori, who I had found out was often referred to as 'The Red Scorpion' by his comrades. Thankfully, I had yet to encounter that damn Uchiha, but I knew he'd be lurking somewhere.

'Emiko?' Kichiro whispered after a few minutes of lights out.

'Hmm?'

'Why do you hate Sasuke Uchiha so much?'

The question threw me off guard and I had to really concentrate on whether or not I had imagined him speak. 'What? How do you know about that?'

'…Don't get angry…'

'Kichiro!'

'Don't get angry!'

I huffed and agreed impatiently.

'Well, you talk in your sleep,' he began slowly, but I already knew that. 'Last night you were mumbling about him being a jerk… You said a bunch of other stuff but most of it was just gobbledegook.'

I rolled onto my back and stared at the bland ceiling above me. Sasuke really was a jerk. 'I just don't get on with him, that's all.'

'Oh.' He seemed unconvinced, but seemed to guess that I really didn't want to talk about it and dropped the subject.

********** The next evening **********

I was bored. So, painfully bored. We were still at the same location, but apparently were moving on again tomorrow. Sasori and Kichiro had both been absent since the early hours of the morning, and I had been incredibly irritated to find that they had taken both keys to the room, so I was stuck. I let out a warm breath on the windowpane, watching in mild fascination as a small cloud of condensation appeared on the glass.

I lifted a finger to lazily draw a squiggly outline of a flower, before rubbing it off and breathing a clean cloud to draw on.

I was just finishing off a particularly detailed window-finger drawing of a Chinese style dragon when the door was swung open with a loud bang, and Kichiro stumbled in carrying a large bundle of what looked like summoning scrolls.

I leapt up immediately and crossed the floor in a second, pointing an accusing finger in his face. 'And just where the hell have you been? Do you know how bored out of my mind I have been all day trapped in here?!'

'You could have gone out.' Sasori commented dryly, strolling in after the squire. 'We left you a key on the windowsill.'

'…No you didn't?' It was more of a question than an argument.

Sasori tilted his head to look around me at the blatantly blank windowsill, his eyes momentarily skimming over my window art. 'Oh, I thought we did. Apologies.'

My hands closed into tights fists at my side as he brushed past me calmly.

'Deep breaths, Emiko.' Kichiro patted my shoulder teasingly before kneeling on his sleeping bag and spreading the scrolls out in front of him.

I pinched the bridge of my nose, trying not to let them get a rise out of me, but it was obvious they were winning.

'So,' I ground out through gritted teeth. 'Where _have_ you been?'

'The troops started their training this morning, which you'd have known if you were paying attention to Sasori yesterday.'

'Suck up.' I accused him quietly. I was secretly growing to like Kichiro though, he could take a joke and was quite a laid back, light-hearted character, which I appreciated. 'So, how was it? Were you the best quire in the field?' I asked sarcastically, pretending to be interested.

'Geez, you sound like my mum.'

I rolled my eyes at his response and went back to my window dragon, which was starting to fade.

'It was good actually. It was really interesting to see everyone's abilities…Did you do that?' I glanced over my shoulder to see him pointing at the window.

'No, Santa's elves snuck in while I was tidying around and drew it on.' I plastered a stupid grin on my face, pleased with my newest level of sarcasm.

Sasori appeared at my side and traced over one of the fading lines with his index finger. 'That's obviously not true since you'd never be caught dead _tidying_.'

I swatted his hand away and stuck out my tongue, lacking another witty comment after my last brilliant one. He chuckled quietly at my childish action and moved to continue his previous objective of straightening out his sleeping bag, which is when something on his arm caught my eye.

I stood over him and folded my arms, coughing obnoxiously when he ignored me.

Seemingly satisfied with his handy work, he pushed his pillow up against the wall and leaned back leisurely, finally meeting my gaze. 'Yes?'

'What is _that_?' I pointed to his arm and he stared down at it dumbly.

'My arm.' He deadpanned, knowing full well what I was talking about.

'Har har.' I knelt down on the wooden floor beside him, careful not to disturb his now tidy sleeping bag. 'Let me see.'

He retracted his arm into his chest, about to shoot me down when Kichiro grassed him in.

'One of the other warriors managed to graze it with a kunai early this afternoon. It looked a lot worse before all the blood was cleaned off.' The younger male grinned, clearly unfazed by gore.

'Sasori!' I snapped, turning my irritated glare on the redhead again. 'What did you clean it with?'

He broke away from giving Kichiro the evils and raised an eyebrow stubbornly. 'With water. It's just a scratch, I'm sure I'll live.'

'Let me see anyway, it could get infected or reopen if you catch it on something.' I droned, the medic in me taking over as I made a grab for his arm, which he managed to pull out of my reach.

'Leave it, it's fine!' He frowned as I leaned forward in another failed attempt of catching it.

I sat back and huffed. 'Will you just cooperate already? I've been sat in here all day bored stiff drawing dragons on windows and waiting for someone to get hurt so I can do my damn job. Now let. Me. See!'

He glowered at me a moment longer, before letting out a breath of resignation and extending his forearm to me.

'Thank you.' I pulled it a little closer and leaned over the graze to get a better look. It was a little more than a minor injury, but as he said, he'd live. 'It's not infected, _yet_. One sec I'm gonna grab my pack.'

Thankfully he didn't protest again when I returned, simply sat back and watched curiously as I rubbed my forefinger over the small red line, not missing the face he pulled as I did so, confirming that it stung. I decided against commenting in case he refused my treatment again.

'It's not too deep, so it should be simply enough to heal.' I mumbled, more to myself than anyone in particular. I pulled a small cotton bud out of my bag and smeared a tiny blob of disinfectant gel on it, dabbing the wound before the healing process, just to be sure. Then I made a quick hand sign and hovered my palm over the reddened area, allowing my chakra to seep through my palm and onto his skin, glowing green as it met its target.

The process only lasted a few minutes, but when I finished, my hand lingered over his arm as I debated with myself.

I could feel his eyes on me, waiting uncharacteristically patiently to see what I was going to do next.

Decision made, I made a slightly more complicated hand sign.

'What's that one for? I don't recognise the sequence.' His head tilted, intrigued.

'It's something I made myself. It'll stop it from itching.' Holding my palm flat against his skin, which was still warm from the healing process, I slowly lifted my hand up until it hovered about two inches from his arm, drawing with it what looked like a shimmering yellow bubble. The bottom of the bubble squashed onto his arm slightly, while the top clung to my open hovering palm. I held it there steadily for another few moments before dispelling it completely.

'All done. My medical opinion is that you'll probably survive in this instance.' My purple gaze flickered up to meet his almost fascinated-looking brown ones.

'Why would it itch?' He seemed genuinely interested for once.

'Because of the intrusion of my chakra into your system. Healing chakra works in a similar way to damage inflicting chakra. When you enforce an attack with chakra it enters the other persons body when you land the blow, and puts more strength into hurting them. Healing chakra has the same properties to an extent, so it can still be uncomfortable afterwards.' I babbled, enjoying the opportunity to talk about something I understood.

He nodded, rubbing a hand over the area I had healed thoughtfully.

'I erm, don't usually use that last one on people outside my family, so I'd appreciate it if you didn't mention it to the others…' I twiddled my fingers nervously, wondering why I had decided to use it on someone who was practically a stranger. Maybe I was just showing off.

A faint trace of a smile crossed his face, but it was gone as quickly as it came, replaced with a short nod.

Retreating to the safety of my sleeping bag, I curled myself into it and zipped it over my face so that only my eyes were left peeping out. It was only now I realised how shattered I was. A long day of drawing on windows will do that to you.

* * *

**A/N: **This 'window art' is something I do in long car journeys when I'm bored, although I've never attempted a full drawing of a detailed Chinese dragon…

Something to aspire to in the future.

Feedback is always useful, not to mention motivating, so feel free - you know where the review button is ;D


	4. A minor Incident

**A/N: **Woo POV change! Exciting times.

If anyone is wondering what Emiko looks like, you can go check out my deviantart – VampireBasket, same as my fanfiction. Link is on my profile if you're interested. And yes, the username is a cross between Vampire Knight and Fruits Basket. I'm just that cool.

Still a disclaimer! I own nothing but the OCs unfortunately.

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**A minor Incident**

********** Sasori's POV **********

Kichiro was incompetent. I glared at him from the corner of my eye as he trundled along beside me, pausing every other step to readjust his grip on the scrolls he was carrying. I was half tempted to snatch them off him and carry them myself.

Although I had to admit, when he had first started he had been considerably worse. I suppose I had to give him some credit for his improvement, slight as it was.

'Sasori?'

Glancing down at the shorter male, I already knew what he was going to say, just like he probably already knew the answer.

'Can we slow down just a little? We're already mega early…'

I rolled my eyes in irritation, not even bothering to reply. He looked as though he was going to protest again, but a shout from behind thankfully distracted him.

'Hey, Sasori!'

The Uchiha jogged to greet us, easily matching my pace as we headed for the training ring the locals had provided for us. It had been a week and a half since we had left Ookiimura, but I couldn't complain about the distance we were covering. At this rate we'd reach the battle field in little over two months.

'Seen the sparring matches for today yet?' Sasuke asked, an annoying grin spreading across his face.

'Not yet.' I droned, keeping my eyes straight ahead. It really didn't matter to me who I was fighting, and it was too early for playing along with Sasuke's giddy mood.

'Hah, well you're in for a treat today, buddy!' He threw me another stupid grin, knowing the term 'buddy' would piss me off.

'How thrilling.'

'Wait, are you against each other today?' Kichiro piped up, suddenly interested.

'Damn right.' He confirmed, his expression darkening into a smirk as he added, 'so you can be sure you'll be putting that medic of yours to good use tonight!'

'No way… Have you seen this guy fight?' The squire bubbled excitedly, and I'll admit the corners of my mouth did tilt upwards slightly at the compliment.

'Pfft, have you seen _me_ fight? My medic's been bored out her mind up till now!' Sasuke quipped, which reminded me of something.

'She's gonna kill you when she finds out, you know.'

The Uchiha only responded with a slight snigger, earning a confused look from Kichiro.

'Who is? Finds out what?'

'Never you mind, Squire.' He snapped at the boy, earning a small glare from myself. I may not have been all that fond of Kichiro, but it really pissed me off when other people interfered with my things.

We finally arrived at the training ring, which I was disappointed to find that was much smaller than the last one. Ah well, I didn't need much space to wipe the floor with that cocky brat, Uchiha. My thoughts began to trail to Emiko and what the real reason was for her ultimate hatred for my comrade, as I had long since guessed it ran deeper than simply not getting along. Though he could be unbearable, at times.

The training consisted of four rounds, each lasting up to one hour each, with an hours break in between, where we were supposed to 'relax and recover' during that time.

There was 23 members in our Squad, so there was usually a couple of groups of three fighting rather than all pairs. We had to squash all our matches into the same arena and fight around each other, so this smaller ring would definitely be interesting. The only saving grace being that the squad was split in half, so while one set were resting, the other half of the squad would fight, therefore alternating starting times.

When the other warriors all finally decided to grace us with their presence, Sasuke and I were among the first half to begin.

Round one and two were relatively even, though I had managed to leave the Uchiha with a rather nasty concussion at the last minute.

Needless to say I was feeling pretty smug about that. But that was my first mistake.

Round three was a Taijutsu only round, which wasn't my strongest skill I'll admit, but I was still damn better than most of my snivelling, weakling comrades.

Sasuke, however, excelled at close combat.

As soon as the buzzer had sounded, he was in front of me in a flash, right leg extended to the side in a long sweeping kick. I sidestepped easily out of range, and leapt backward hastily to avoid an equally fast punch aimed for my gut.

The brat was completely undeterred though, and effortlessly kept the pace as he continued to throw incredibly well aimed blows at me until I was involuntarily backed up against the training ring wall. Crossing my arms over my face against yet another infuriatingly strong punch, I grunted on impact as I was slammed backward despite my successful block.

I rubbed my forearms, a low rumble forming in the back of my throat as I glared daggers at the Uchiha, who had pranced back to the opposing side of the ring grinning gleefully. Damn bastard was mocking me.

I took a step forward and repositioned into a defensive stance, gaze drifting from my opponent momentarily at a few of the other fighters who had paused their own spars to watch in fascination. Sasuke and I were by far the strongest of the team, so it must have been entertaining and unusual for them to witness such an encounter.

My distraction was my second and most stupid mistake. Something hard collided with the side of my face sending me sprawling onto the floor at the force. I snarled at the blow and was on my feet again instantly, too fast apparently, because my legs shook and wobbled dangerously as my vision blurred, my head spinning.

'You let your guard down, Sasori!' I heard my opponent sing, and I wanted nothing more than to snap his neck in half at his taunting.

Unfortunately, dark blotches had begun to form over my left eye, the same side that had been struck, and I clamped a hand over it as I rebalanced. I stumbled clumsily as a high pitched buzzing starting to drill into my ear drum. Squeezing my eyes shut, I cursed as I realised that the buzzing had actually been to end the round early, which really pissed me off. I had been looking forward to round four, as it was an anything goes kind of round and I usually did my best in them.

Someone was shaking my shoulder and repeating my name, so I batted a hand awkwardly in their direction to get rid of them. Regaining my sight long enough to get to my feet, I pinned Kichiro with a furious glare.

'Get back to the room. I'll meet you there later.'

The boy scuttled off without a word and I turned to the squad leader that was now standing before me.

'You should probably get back to your medic.' He advised, forced concern tainting his otherwise firm expression. 'You're dismissed for today.'

I didn't bother to argue, I knew he'd made up his mind. My face matching my sour mood, I marched for the exit, keeping my head focused straight ahead, not only to avoid eye contact with the rest of the gawping warriors, but also to keep myself from stumbling again.

I reached the hotel we were based at in no time, but for some reason my feet continued past the building and into the temporary medical tent that our team had set up. I shifted uncomfortably as I hovered in the entrance, unsure of why I was here when I had a medic of my own back in the room.

I shuddered at the thought of the accusing glare she would throw me when she saw the state my eye was in. Something about the way her eyes would skim over my body as she examined whatever condition I was in unnerved me, so I willed my feet to move forward again to the small desk that had been set up.

The woman behind it smiled brightly, directing me behind one of the curtained off squares at the back of the tent.

'What happened to your own medic, hm?' She wondered aloud as her cold fingers prodded at my forehead, gaining a small frown from me. Emiko's hands were always warm.

'She's too judgemental.' I rolled my eyes at my comment, hearing how pathetic it sounded.

The nurse chuckled softly, moving to grab a damp cloth to dab over my eye. 'Well, I hate to break it to you but we can't do much for you here, we're just a back-up medical team. You'll have to face her at some point.'

The cloth was pressed against my eye, forcing it shut as she wiped off some of the blood from where Sasuke's sandal had sliced my eyebrow. I winced at the pressure and scowled at the floor. Emiko never used this sort of pressure when the injury was so fresh.

'What's the point of having a back-up medical team that can't use medical jutsu?' I murmured, more to myself.

'For stubborn patients like you, I suppose.' She winked and I resisted another eye roll.

The woman continued to chatter lightly as she finished cleaning the wound and gave me a small bottle of pills to take if my head started to ache again. I mumbled my thanks and wandered into the clouded daylight.

Sasuke was never going to let me live this one down. And if Emiko found out, neither would she.

How irritating…

********** Emiko's POV **********

Sighing, I slipped the small sheet of paper that I had been using as my bookmark into the journal I had been reading and tucked it under my pillow. There was very little to do in the day when everyone was out, so the squad leader had provided each medic with several journals containing information on herbs and spices that could be used for more old fashioned healing methods to read. But they weren't all that interesting.

I glanced at the clock. 2:35pm, still a least another hour and a half until the boys were back with the keys, which is why I was pretty surprised when the door was flung open and Kichiro, looking much more flustered than usual as he fumbled with his mass of scrolls, came wobbling in.

'You're back early,' I stated, waiting for an explanation as I took several scrolls from his arms and laid them out on his bedroll.

'Thanks,' he mumbled, mirroring my action with the rest of his burden. 'There was a minor incident…'

My eyebrow raised curiously. 'What kind of incident?'

The boy shook his head stubbornly. 'You should speak to Sasori about it. It's not my place to say!'

I frowned at his sudden compliance. 'Kichiro, tell me what happened!

'I can't! Please don't get angry, I don't know who I'd rather be killed by, you or him!' He jabbed a finger over his shoulder to the empty doorway he'd just come through, but I knew who he meant. I glared at him threateningly before sighing in submission. I did feel sorry for Kichiro at times, getting caught up in between mine and Sasori's short fused tempers.

'Fine.' I muttered, wandering back to my pillow and propping it up against the wall.

'I'm going down to the campfire thing tomorrow night. You should come, it'll be a change from sitting inside all night!' Kichiro grinned, changing the subject.

'What campfire thing?'

'Oh right, I forgot you don't pay attention.' He laughed as he dodged the journal I threw at him. 'After training tomorrow, they're setting up tents and stuff just outside this village with a bonfire and all sorts! We're still sleeping in this hotel tonight and tomorrow though. Anyway, after we get the new lot of troops there's going to be a big gathering thing to keep the spirits high in the squad, I suppose.'

'…What new troops?' I frowned, confused by everything he had just said.

He sighed. 'Geez Emiko, you really don't listen to anything do you?' I scowled across the room and stuck my tongue out as he continued. 'Tomorrow morning we're meeting up with about 12 more warriors who are travelling from the East. They're joining our squad.'

'Oh.'

'They're bringing their own medics and squires and stuff, so we won't be moved around or anything.' He smiled as he concluded, obviously looking forward to the upcoming events.

'Wait, did you say everyone was invited?' I asked, my attention sparking.

'Yeah… Oh yeah! Hey maybe your sister will be there!' He caught my drift and pulled a cheesy thumbs up. 'I'll bet she will be. It'll be a great night!'

* * *

**A/N: **Group gatherings are always something to avoid. Emiko is gonna learn this quickly I'm afraid.

Till the next time.


	5. The Stubborn Patient

**A/N: **I love fluff in stories, so you'll notice my fluff radar is set to the maximum in most things I write. Though the actually development of feelings may be a little slow, it's all relevant.

Also, I received a really lovely review from a guest and I just wanted to thank them for boosting my spirit on this story! :) I hope I don't disappoint you!

Don't own Naruto, blah blah, you get it.

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**The Stubborn Patient**

It was gone midnight when Sasori finally decided to make an appearance. The floorboards creaked as he snuck across the room and crawled into his sleeping bag. I scowled into the darkness and sat up straight, my eyes practically glowing as I glared in his direction.

Unzipping myself from my bag, I made my way across the room silently and knelt beside his head, my fingers lingering over the lamp switch.

'Don't do it.' His voice made me jump, and I sighed, disappointed that my sneaking efforts had been for nothing.

'What time do you call this? And what's been going on today? I don't know what you said or did to him but Kichiro's not saying a word.'

I heard a huff and the rustling of bed sheets as he rolled over to face away from me.

When he didn't reply, I slapped my hand over the lamp switch and it flickered to life, half blinding myself in the process.

He made a sort of growling sound and tugged the sleeping bag up over his head away from the light, mumbling some sort of half-hearted insult.

'Hey!' I snapped, prodding harshly at where I guessed the side of his waist would be, and allowing a smug smile to cross my face when he jolted at the action. Apparently he was ticklish.

He groaned and rolled back to face me, though still fully engulfed by the covers. 'Go away, Emiko.' His voice was rough and tired and it almost made me pity him and leave him alone. _Almost_.

'Regardless of what happened I need to check you over for injuries.' I stated matter-of-factly, not forgetting that I had a genuine reason to be bugging him. 'Now get out of there before I drag you out.'

Finally, he let out a prolonged, heavy sigh and began to shuffle around again until his crimson hair came into sight. He sat up angrily and crossed his arms over his chest, angling his body away from me and the harsh lamplight. I rolled my eyes and turned the switch slightly, leaving a dim orange glow. His gaze moved to rest on mine in defeat, and he watched cautiously as several emotions flickered across my face. Even in this shadowy light, the bruising was clear as day over his left eye and forehead.

I grimaced at the sight, it looked sore as hell. Deciding against giving him another snarky comment, I reached up slowly to trace two forefingers over the affected area, my hand pausing every so often to weigh up the damage. That was when I noticed something.

'Did you clean out the cut yourself again?' My eyebrows knitted together at the pink jagged line. It was definitely a fresh wound, but there was no patches of dry blood and no sign of infection.

'No.'

'Weird…' I mumbled, figuring he was lying but choosing not to argue. It was far too late at night for his stubbornness.

I shuffled closer and leaned forward so that our foreheads almost touched, my free hand lifted to cover his right eye. 'Can you see?'

He gave me an odd look before shifting his gaze from mine to just past my ear, looking at something in the distance behind me. After a moment, his eye refocused on mine and he nodded.

'Right. Well that's one thing I suppose. You're an idiot.'

'Because I can see?' He shot me a look that was a mixture of amusement and irritation.

I resisted the urge to slap him upside the head. 'You should have come straight to me as soon as you did that. There could have been serious internal damage, you could have affected your sight.'

'But I didn't, and there isn't. So what's the harm?'

'Have you had any dizziness?'

'No.'

'Liar.'

'Why ask if you're just going to decide for yourself?'

I pursed my lips and regarded him quietly, dropping my hands into my lap. It was only then that I realised how close we were, which usually didn't bother me since I often needed to be at this distance to examine any injuries he had obtained. My eyes widened for a split second as I felt my cheeks start to warm up, and I quickly let my head sag as I manoeuvred my hands into the relevant healing signs.

Palm now aglow with faint jade chakra, my hand lifted slowly to hover over his left eye. His eyelids drooped lazily, and after a few minutes they slid fully closed as he released a sigh of relief. I knew it must have been sore.

Feeling awkward all of a sudden, I decided to break the silence. 'So where have you been all this time?'

His eyes remained closed as he replied casually. 'Nowhere interesting.'

'Oh.' I hadn't really expected an actual answer. Chewing nervously on the inside of my cheek, I wracked my brains for another topic. 'Apparently there's a campfire gathering thing on tomorrow night.'

One honey coloured eye opened halfway to peer at me suspiciously. 'What're you doing?'

I blinked at him, confused. 'What?'

'Small talk. It's not like you.'

I supressed a gulp and suddenly found his injury very interesting. 'I was just making conversation. I thought you might know if my sister would be there…'

This time both his eyes open, and at such close proximity I was sure I saw a hint of guilt behind his enlarged brown irises. 'Oh. I would have thought so. I know a lot of people are looking forward to it.'

'Except you?' I guessed, judging by the way he rolled his eyes in disapproval.

He gave a humourless breath. 'Except me.'

'Oh, so you're not going then?' I pouted, slightly disappointed that I'd have to venture into the squad of strangers alone.

'I didn't say that.'

'…So you are going?'

He huffed and gave me another irritated look.

My chakra flickered out as I was momentarily distracted by his glare, causing him to wince at the pain that I had been masking with my healing jutsu.

'Sorry…' I mumbled, shutting up and quickly restarting my jutsu, I threw all my concentration into healing the cut over his eyebrow.

The minutes ticked by in silence again as I continued, forgetting the awkward situation and zoning out into medic-mode, which is why I flinched so violently when his fingers flicked my knee.

'What is _wrong_ with you tonight?' He frowned, clearly unimpressed that my chakra had given out again.

I glared and snapped at him. 'Maybe if you weren't in such a bad mood I could concentrate better.'

It was a lie, my strange mood had nothing to do with his attitude, which in all honesty wasn't much different to any other time I healed him. My eyebrows knitted together as I tried to figure it out myself, but then a new thought entered my mind. 'Why did you flick me, anyway?'

'You were ignoring me.'

'I thought that's what you wanted…' I grumbled under my breath, finally finishing my work on his forehead.

'I mean I was speaking to you.'

'Oh. What did you say?'

'Doesn't matter now.' My both curious and annoyed look went unnoticed as he moved a hand up to rub his eyebrow, prodding experimentally.

'How does it feel? Any aching or numbness?'

He shook his head and I went about signing for my own special bubble jutsu, which I had taken to calling it after failing to come up with a professional sounding name. I pressed my palm back against the side of his forehead, and the familiar yellow bubble substance formed as I rolled it gently over the freshly healed area.

I felt him relax under my hand again and I risked a glance at his expression, only to accidently find myself locked in an intense hazel gaze. My lips parted slightly in surprise. How long had he been watching me? I broke away quickly, not missing his tiny smirk at the unavoidable blush now heating up my face. _What the hell is wrong with me tonight?_

I released the jutsu sooner than I could have, shuffling backwards slightly to admire my work. 'Right, all done.'

I wondered briefly who was more relieved that the process had ended. It's never fun for a medic who has a patient who is either far too proud or far too stubborn to allow other people to help or heal him. I decided it was the latter. Stubborn fit his character better.

I scrabbled to my feet and started to retreat to the other side of the room where my sleeping bag was lovingly calling my name, but my bare foot got tangled in loose material on the floor and sent my sprawling face first onto the wooden floor.

I leapt to my feet comically as quickly as I had hit the floor, earning an amused smirk from the redhead. I glared down hostilely at the offending object, which I now identified as the pack Sasori usually kept on his person during training.

I opened my mouth to scold him for leaving it lying around when a small, shiny glass bottle caught my eye. Bending down to retrieve the transparent container, I inspected it in the palm of my hand. Headache tablets?

Realisation dawned on me and my eyes shot to his. 'What is this?' I tried to ask calmly, but it came out more as a half growl.

He pursed his lips and squinted as he tried to come up with a lie, but I cut in again before he could.

'You really _didn't_ clean your eye yourself, did you?'

He shook his head slowly, his expression cautious as he figured out that I knew exactly what I was talking about.

'You went to another medic?' Disappointment flashed through my eyes as I accused him, a small part of me hoping I was wrong. If he was avoiding using my service then I could end up being reassigned or worse, deployed. I couldn't have that, not when I was so close to seeing Mina again, and I was certainly not going to be sent away from her just because this over-confident, selfish jerk was too stubborn to accept medical assistance. 'Why?'

I didn't think he was going to reply as the silence dragged on, but eventually he shrugged. 'It was more convenient.'

'More convenient? What's that supposed to mean? Am I not healing you properly?'

'You heal me perfectly well actually.'

Blinded by the fear of separation from my sister, I skipped over the compliment. 'Then would you prefer I simply stick a band aid over your injuries and shove you back out the door with a cheery smile and a 'you'll be fine' on your way?' I hissed, lowering my voice as I heard sheets rustling from Kichiro's direction.

'You're overeating. It was just convenient.'

'What does that even mean?'

He huffed impatiently. 'Look, do you want me to say I find you annoying so I was avoiding you? Or that I hate the way your chakra prickles irritatingly when you use that bubble thing? Fine. If that's what you want then there's your reason. You're annoying, and your technique is incompetent.'

I flinched at his words, not expecting him to snap back so angrily. Granted, I had only known Sasori for little over two weeks, but the only other time I had seen him really angry was last week when Kichiro had accidentally ripped one of his scrolls, rendering it useless. And even then, he hadn't expressed such emotion as now.

Unable to find a suitable response, I shrunk away to wrap myself in my sleeping bag, looking at anything but him. He was still glaring at me, I knew. I could practically feel his gaze burning through my head as I shuffled under my covers and tucked them around my chin, staring blankly up at the ceiling.

After a minute, I heard him sigh slowly, before the light clicked off and the room was plunged into darkness, matching my rapidly plummeting mood.

I can't have failed so easily, not when it's my fault Mina was in this mess. What if she had ended up as acting medic for that psychopath we encountered in the marketplace back home? Or worse… I had no idea what the other men were like, and from what I'd seen already, I was sure as hell that I didn't want to find out.

Turning miserably onto my side, I finally let the tears run freely from my burning eyes, squeezing them shut and holding my breath as I silenced the upcoming sobs. _I'm so sorry Mina._

* * *

**A/N: **Emiko is insecure and already has trust issues, so Sasori isn't helping really. Then again, are you surprised?


	6. Call Me Over-Protective

**A/N: **Some new fun begins in this chapter, introductions to some new guys on the block.

I don't own Naruto, if I did, most of Akatsuki would still be alive. Sad times.

* * *

**Call Me Over-Protective**

********** Sasori's POV **********

Emiko was both confusing and annoying. But mostly confusing. In all honesty I didn't know why I had avoided her yesterday, but it pissed me off that, even after I had blatantly admitted that she was a perfectly good medic, she still quite willingly believed the lie that she was incompetent.

Stupid girl.

There was no training today since the new troops had arrived, which I was less than thrilled about. New troops meant another large addition of testosterone, all fighting to be crowned 'top dog' or whatever it was they were squabbling about.

To say I liked my squad would be an overstatement, but I was content with the way it was. Everyone knew their place, most people knew how to show up on time, and most importantly, no one messed with my stuff.

From my seat in the window of a quaint little café I had found during my search to kill the rest of the afternoon, I chewed boredly on a piece of dry toast as I watched them 'introduce themselves'. They had indeed brought their own squires and medics, and I couldn't help but notice the strange silvery coloured bangles each of them wore on their arms. It appeared to be a running theme throughout the entire group, warriors and medics included, but not the squires for some reason. Odd.

I soon lost interest in their arrival, turning my attention back to my plate in front of me. A perky young waitress came scurrying up to my table as I finished off my glass of water, practically tripping over herself in her haste to top it back up.

'Can I get you anything else, sir?' She beamed at me cheerily and I resisted rolling my eyes.

'Just the bill, thanks.' I muttered, and she nodded and hurried off to the counter.

The bell in the doorway jangled, indicating new customers who, were unfortunately several of the new men on my squad.

Turning back to gaze out the window, I did my best to ignore the bickering rabble as they headed for the counter, infuriating as they were.

'Well hey there gorgeous, how do _you_ like your eggs in the morning?' I glanced in disgust at the male responsible for such a ridiculous pickup line. He was the tallest in the group of four, and was leaning casually against the counter and gazing into the flustered waitress's eyes.

'H-hello, sir. Can I g-get you anything this morning?' She stuttered sheepishly, clearly uncomfortable with the attention.

'Hmm, a whole plate of something like you would be excellent.' He flashed her a sly grin, baring his teeth a little too much.

'Geez, Satoshi, you're scaring the girl. Here, sweetie,' he produced a single red rose from his long sleeve that made me want to gag at the cliché. 'A rose by any other name…'

Simply not caring enough to wait around for her answer, I slapped some money down on the table, probably much more than necessary and strode towards the door.

Outside was just as noisy and I groaned inwardly, sensing a long journey ahead of us. I wandered through the streets back to the hotel, absently wondering if Emiko would be talking to me again, since she had spent most of the morning avoiding me.

As I approached the room, I was mildly intrigued to find Kichiro standing outside the door, fidgeting with his hands. I threw him a questioning glance, and he tugged the hem of his shirt down like a naughty school boy caught standing outside the classroom by the principle.

'Emiko threw me out.'

I blinked at him slowly, taking in his excuse. 'Why?'

'She's getting changed, so she threw me out and told me to stand guard.'

'Why can't she get changed in the bathroom like she normally does?'

'Because… Erm, well I… You see the bathroom is…'

'Spit it out, brat.' I snapped. Damn fumbling fool.

'I may have flooded it… Accidentally.'

I gritted my teeth and closed my eyes, opting to rub my temples rather than whack the imbecile out of my way. '_Of course_ you did. Well how long will she be?'

As if on cue, the door slid open and said girl appeared in the doorway, grinning. 'Okay you can come in… now.' She faltered as her eyes landed on me. She had set the back of her hair free to fall loosely around her shoulders, her usual braid ribbon replaced for a small white bow pinning the lock of hair to the side.

My eyes trailed over her dress. It was a plain, knee-length halter-neck, and matching the hair bow in colour, it suited her perfectly.

'Sasori?' My eyes snapped back up to hers as she spoke, noticing how her dress somehow made the lighter violet flecks in her eyes stand out more.

'Woah, Emiko you look amazing!' Kichiro beamed, giving her two thumbs up. I made a disapproving noise at his action and brushed past her, not missing the way her face fell as I did. _What the hell did I do this time? _I thought irritably.

I risked a glance into the bathroom, tutting at the sight and bending down to rummage in my bag for a fresh shirt. Deciding against making much of an effort, since I really couldn't care less, I left my baggy khaki pants on and switched my black T-shirt for a black polo-shirt, earning a sideways glance from Emiko.

'That's what you're wearing?'

'…Yes, why?'

'It's pretty much the same as what you had on before.'

'Is that a problem?'

'Guess not.' She muttered, defeated.

Grabbing my pack and clipping it to the side of my belt, I made my way back to the door.

'Come on then. We don't want to miss all the fun…' My sarcasm fell on deaf ears as the medic and the squire exchanged excited glances, although I think Emiko's was more nerves than excitement.

They hurried after me as I exited the room, Kichiro pausing to lock the door behind us and jogging to catch up. I was almost a tiny bit proud that they had actually been ready to leave on time, but squashed the feeling as quickly as it had come.

No point getting my hopes up, they would both always be hopeless time-keepers.

As soon as the gathering came into view, Kichiro practically skipped off into the bustling gazebo, leaving Emiko trailing silently behind me. My head itched to glance back at her, so quiet that I was actually wondering if she was still there.

Upon entering said tent, my eyes skimmed the area and, selecting an empty picnic bench on the opposite side, made my way towards the back. Emiko sat down quietly on the other side of the table to me, her eyes flickering from person to person in search of her sister.

I was not looking forward to the scene if she did happen to show up, since she would inevitably be with her warrior who, I was positive, Emiko would be disgusted by.

A particularly louder group of men caught my attention momentarily, swaying into my line of vision and heading for our table. I growled under my breath as recognition dawned, it was the men from the little café.

The tallest of the group, I vaguely recalled his name as Satoshi, leered down at Emiko, flashing his teeth again in that almost threatening manner. 'Wow baby, your eyes are amazing.' Great, here we go again.

I scowled at the man as he leaned further over my medic, but to my amusement, she was having none of it.

'Oh really? Seeing your back would be pretty amazing…'

I stifled a rare laugh at his expression of pure shock. He'd clearly never been rejected before.

The gangly one from behind him laughed aloud, shoving him out of the way and congratulating Emiko on shooting him down. She offered him an uninterested but polite smile in response, turning away to continue scanning the crowd, but he didn't give up that easily.

'You know what, if I could rearrange the alphabet, I'd put U and I together.'

'That's weird, I'd put F and U together.' She snapped, crossing her arms and frowning in irritation as he continued to distract her from her task. I raised an eyebrow and waited for his reaction, expecting him to get angry and lunge at her. I wouldn't put it past him.

Unfortunately, he was still undeterred and laughed again, a deep, throaty, _sickening_ laugh. 'Now now, don't be like that, we're just having some fun.'

He scooted himself onto the bench next to her, a little too closely if you ask me, his arm lying flat on the table before him, the strange silver bangle catching her attention as he moved.

Her head titled curiously. 'What's that for?'

Something flashed through his eyes that instantly had me on guard. He was up to something and I didn't think I liked where this was going.

'My bangle? Here, you want to see it?' Tugging it off his arm in one swift move, I shifted uncomfortably as she took it from him, turning it over as though entranced.

'Try it on if you like.'

She regarded him suspiciously before moving to slip it over her hand slowly.

'Emiko.' I barked suddenly, scaring her half to death. She stared up at my warning glare in confusion, dropping the item and flinching as it clanged noisily on the wooden surface.

'S-sorry, here you go.' She apologised to the man for her action as she pressed it back into his hand, but he was no longer paying her any attention.

My eyes locked with his for a split-second, a silent exchange of threats passing between us while Emiko, blissfully oblivious, began to clamber out from the picnic bench.

'I'm going to go have a look around, see if I can find Mina.' She smiled lightly at me and I waved a hand in dismissal, still watching the new comers in the corner of my eye.

When she had gone, Satoshi cracked his knuckles behind me. I half turned, throwing him a bored expression at the pathetic noise.

'I don't know who you are, but there are things you should know about the way our squad works, and the way yours is gonna work now too.' He sneered, using his full height to loom over me.

'Whatever you say.' I droned, not actually giving the slightest damn what he was going to say and hoping he would give up and leave. He didn't.

'First off, you don't want to get in our way, you've heard of the Fire Blade Four, right?'

'Not that I recall.' I let one eye fall shut, watching him lazily with the other. Still, he was not discouraged.

'Heh, well you're looking at them.' He grinned smugly, pausing momentarily as though waiting for me to cower in fear or bow down in admiration. I did neither.

'Satoshi here is the strongest of our squad, hell, probably one of the strongest in the whole platoon!' The gangly one proclaimed confidently.

'Is that so?' I raised an eyebrow, trying a different approach to lose their interest by humouring them.

'That your bird?' Satoshi pointed to Emiko, who was awkwardly squashing herself in between a squabbling pair of squires. Holding back my smirk at the ridiculous girl, I turned back to the men.

'I don't own any poultry, if that's what you mean.'

One of the silent ones from the back suddenly slammed his fist down on the bench, but I barely batted an eye at his supposedly dangerous gesture. 'Don't get cocky with us, worthling!' He snarled.

My lips curled up at the term, finding the irony hilarious. His movements were sluggish from his over-worked body mass, and though I had only heard him speak those six words, it was obvious his IQ was through the floor.

'Either way, we take what we want in this squad. So watch your back.' Satoshi finished. I glowered at the unspoken threat towards the hopelessly defenceless girl, a strange, unidentified feeling bubbling in my stomach.

They sauntered away from the table and into the crowd without another word, and though they appeared to have lost interest in my medic for the time being, I decided pointlessly to keep one wary eye on them for the remainder of the night.

* * *

**A/N: **I have decided, I quite like writing Sasori, even if I do make him slightly OOC in the sense that he's cockier in this fic and sometimes acts a bit more impulsively than he should, but it's all part of the plot.

You'll see what I mean. Do tell me if I suck.


	7. Mixed Messages

**A/N: **Whoever can suggest a suitable word for that tiny breathy laugh you do where you don't really laugh you just sort of make a noise like 'tuh' or something, will forever be knighted a legend.

Because I have no words for that laugh. It ceases to exist in the English dictionary.

* * *

**Mixed Messages**

* * *

********** Emiko's POV **********

I ducked and apologised awkwardly as I avoided another flailing arm. The two men I was squeezing between paid me no attention as they continued to argue about whose skills as a squire were better than the others, and I breathed a sigh of relief that I had not disturbed them after all.

I managed to find a small space that was mostly free of people on same side of the tent as where we had entered, and I sighed in irritation at my lack of luck in finding my sister. _Where was she?_

A pair of blue-eyed blonde-haired girls, who I identified as twins, were standing a little way away from me, giggling and glancing at me strangely. I watched them approached out of the corner of my eye, curiosity spiking.

'Excuse me?'

My gaze flickered to meet them. They were equally pretty, their big round eyes sparkling in the brightly lit tent as they smiled their greeting.

'You don't know us, we're not in the team, we're actually from this village. We were just wondering…' They exchanged giddy glances, their blonde locks dancing as they giggled again. 'The guy you were sitting with before…'

My eyes snapped to the far side of the tent where Sasori was leaning on his elbows, looking thoroughly bored.

'Do you know him?' They chimed in unison.

'Sort of.' I smiled at them, not wanting to be rude and shrug them off even though I had way more important things to do than hook my stubborn patient up with twins.

'Could you introduce us?' They threw out there suddenly, though it was hardly unexpected.

I sighed lightly and agreed, reluctantly leading the excited pair around the outside of the tent to where he was sat, unsuspecting.

As I drew closer he noticed my company and gave me a look that I could only identify as 'please tell me this isn't what I think it is…'

I gave him an apologetic grin and skipped off before he could formulate a suitable insult to hurl at me, and I chuckled as I heard the twins laughing simultaneously as they sat down.

A couple of hours passed of my wandering aimlessly in and out of the crowd, but Mina was nowhere to be seen.

I glanced around to see that the red-haired warrior had managed to free himself from the fan-girling villagers, and was now busying himself with a half-hearted conversation with the squad leader by the punch fountain.

The only saving grace of this dull and pointless evening had been that Sasuke had failed to show, which I was unbelievably relieved to find. Sighing in defeat, I figured I may as well take my leave. I opted to take a longer route through the village, ambling along casually as I idly admired the small village buildings. I kicked a pebble with me gently and paused to gaze up at the night sky, alight with millions of tiny shimmering dots, scattered around one giant glowing orb. _I hadn't realised it was a full moon tonight_, I thought, smiling to myself.

It was only then that I noticed I was being followed.

I risked a casual glance over my shoulder and, recognising my pursuers as two of the newer members of the squad who had approached our table earlier, I was unsure whether or not they posed a threat. Yes, they were strangers to me, admittedly very drunk strangers, but we were on the same side, the same team, so surely I had nothing to worry about… But as I experimented with my steps, quickening and slowing them, I soon realised that they may in fact be intending something… dishonest, for lack of a better word.

My sole focus being on losing the unwanted company, I managed to accidentally turn into what seemed like a never-ending maze of narrow alleyways, which was ridiculous for such a small town. The drunken pair still hot of my tail, I made several sharp turns in a futile attempt at throwing them off, but despite their intoxicated state, they kept up easily. I rounded another corner, nervously picking up my pace as I heard them laugh drunkenly. I was so busy concentrating on the dynamic duo behind me that I failed to notice the figure standing squarely in the narrow passageway, blocking my escape.

My head collided clumsily with his chest, and I stumbled backwards in surprise and slight panic at not having noticed him. My startled orchid eyes shot up to meet familiar half-lidded hazel as I regained balance.

'S-Sasori, what're you doing here?' I tried to look calm and collected, but my wobbling voice betrayed me.

My eyebrows pulled inward slightly when he didn't reply, but when I looked closer I realised he was actually looking past me. I glanced over my shoulder, following his gaze. Upon sighting the redhead, the two men behind me moved to lean awkwardly and unstably on a wall deeper in the alley, but their eyes stayed on me.

I shifted uncomfortably as I made to turn back to face the one they called, 'The Red Scorpion', but I was suddenly shoved backwards mid-action, my back slamming against the wall roughly. I gasped, both shocked and slightly winded as my eyes widened at my assailant. Expression blank and unreadable, Sasori's palms were flat against the wall either side of my shoulders, his face hovering mere inches from mine.

'W-what are y–'

My bewildered stuttering was silenced instantly as, without a single warning, his lips suddenly crashed down on mine. For a moment, I was too stunned to protest, and then when I did try to push him away, his hands slid firmly down my arms to secure my wrists by my sides. Forcing myself as far back into the bricks as my body would allow, I squeezed my eyes shut and threw my head to the side, momentarily breaking away and gasping for breath.

But the second I had filled my lungs, he was back, forcefully pressing his body against mine. I managed to free my right hand and desperately pushed against his chest, but he barely moved, his strength overpowering mine with ease. His free hand knotted in my loose hair tightly, holding my head still as his lips strayed from my mouth to wander down my jaw to my ear, leaving a trail of butterfly kisses as he went.

I yelped as he nipped at my lower neck, but then froze as he whispered something soft and barely audible against my ear. His breath tickled my skin as he continued to explore my neck, moving down to focus on the curve at the side of my throat.

The hand that had been restraining my left hand slowly crept up my side, brushing lightly against the material of my dress as it came up to rest on my cheek. He brought his face back up to mine and our lips moulded together again, softer this time.

My jaw ached as I struggled to keep my mouth clamped shut stubbornly while his tongue danced across my lower lip. The back of his throat rumbled as he growled quietly in frustration, and pressed against me harder, forcing his way into my mouth. My tongue recoiled at the strange intrusion, but his twisted around it skilfully, making my stomach flip in what I interpreted as disgust.

Finally his lips broke away to travel down the side of my neck again, but as he reached my ear, the little sucking sensation paused as he whispered those same words again.

'_Trust me_.'

Trust him? How the hell was I supposed to do that while he's forcing his tongue down my throat?!

Sasori's hand that had been wound in my hair began to smooth down to my leg, and in one swift movement, he wrenched my dress up my thigh and pulled my leg up to hitch it over his hip. My eyes bulged in embarrassment and horror as his thumb began to rub seductively under my knee.

A sudden noise further down the alley distracted me from my outrage, and my eyes flickered to the two men who I had completely forgotten about, understandably. They were stumbling unsteadily back the way they had come, knocking into several dustbins as they went.

Gradually, Sasori's kisses began to slow and soften, until our lips were simply brushing against each other in a somewhat affectionate motion. His hand gently lowered my leg back to the floor and his forehead bumped against mine as he stared at me and stopped moving altogether. For a second, I didn't react, unsure of what had just happened and what could still happen. The sound of my ragged breathing was loud and distracting, and somewhere in my logical mind I was kind of pissed that he was much more collected than I was at this moment.

His brown irises were dark, and it frightened me to think that the look he was giving me had something even closely related to lust. As though reading my mind, his eyelids slid closed for a brief moment, and when they opened again, his usual soft, lazy expression had spread across his face.

'Sorry.' He mumbled, backing away so quickly that I almost pulled him back, a natural reaction to the sudden lack of warmth, I guessed.

Then my temper sparked, bubbling from deep within my gut as he stood casually about two foot away from me in the dim light.

'What…' I ground out, clenching my jaw so hard that I swear my teeth almost shattered. '…did you say?'

He shrugged calmly, as though nothing had happened. 'I apologise.'

That was it. I snapped, clean in half. Seeing red, I dove at him, fists flailing as he struggled to restrain me.

'What the fuck were you thinking? What the hell?! You can't just… and then just think that… and sorry isn't… Urgh!' I all but screeched at him, feeling a quick flicker of smug victory as his expression faltered momentarily into shock and what I hoped was guilt.

He practically dragged me kicking and screaming back to our small accommodation, gaining a few strange looks from the villagers that he blatantly ignored. Luckily, Kichiro must still have been at the gathering because the room was empty.

As soon as the door was closed I erupted again, ranting and cussing like there was no tomorrow. Sasori slumped onto his sleeping roll cross-legged and leaned his elbows on his knees while his head lopped into his hands.

********** Sasori's POV **********

I let one eye slide shut, idly watching her pace back and forth as she fumed. My eyebrow twitched at the irritating creaking of the floorboards as she stomped around. I let out a long breath. This could go on for a while.

I twiddled a loose strand of cotton from the bedding in my fingers, boredly debating what it would take to get her to drop it, but I knew better than to interrupt a girl mid-rage. I couldn't stop the small smirk that crossed my lips at the memory of her stunned expression when I had first kissed her. I hadn't thought it possible to shut her up so quickly, and the smirk broadened as I wondered if it would shut her up right now too, though I knew that was a bad idea. A very bad idea.

She suddenly rounded on me and my eyes snapped open as I realised I'd been caught.

'You think this is funny?!' She threw her arms up in the air and then let them slap down to her sides. 'You're unbelievable. Are you just gonna sit there smirking all night or am I actually going to get an explanation?!'

Inhaling, I pinched the bridge of my nose and tried to ignore the oncoming migraine. 'I said I'm sorry, didn't I?'

'Why the hell did you do it?!' She yelled, glaring daggers in a way that was probably supposed to look threatening, but it just made her look cute. _Wow, that was a weird thought…_

I debated on how to reply, but when she looked about to start shouting again I quickly threw her the first thing that came into my head. 'It was a warning, okay?'

She stared at me cluelessly, her purple eyes narrowing as she spoke, thankfully quieter this time. 'A warning? What are you talking about?'

I sighed impatiently. I hated having to explain everything, but she clearly wasn't going to get it unless I spelled it out. 'To the two men that were following you. You know they'd have done a lot worse if I hadn't interfered.'

Her jaw fell open, though I didn't raise my hopes at the thought that she finally understood. 'So you're saying… you did me a favour?'

My lips curled upwards in relief. She got it.

However, her next reaction was far from what I imagined. Her pacing resumed furiously as the screeching began again, this time laced with sarcasm.

'OH well I'm _so sorry_. How could I have been so _selfish_, having a go at you like that when I should have been on my knees thanking you, hell, maybe I should be on knees _now_, grovelling for forgiveness for OVERREACTING?!'

And so it went on. I switched off shortly after the grovelling comment. She clearly _was_ overreacting. What I did was _nothing_ compared to what those bastards would have done to her, and probably twice off since there was two of them. My eyebrows knitted together as I glanced back at her. Most women would have been grateful that I stepped in, but not this one. She was a strange one alright, and it infuriated me to no end that I was finding it so damn hard to figure her out.

After seemed like forever, she eventually managed to tire herself out and she flopped onto her bed roll carelessly, leaving only the sound of her deep, heavy breathing as she calmed down.

An hour or two passed and the room fell into almost complete silence. Emiko hadn't moved an inch since she had collapsed and, curiosity getting the better of me, I rose to my feet and edged towards her warily. I stopped to hover over her sleeping form, rolling my eyes as I noticed her hands still balled into angry little fists.

Crouching down, I tugged the sheet up from the bottom of her bed to drape it over her softly, my fingers lingering against her skin probably a second too long. Retreating quickly to my own sleeping place, I shuffled under the cotton covers and sighed. Staring at the ceiling numbly, I traced a finger over a small line of dried blood on my neck where Emiko had caught me in the midst of her flailing. She had thrashed and fought so hard, as though her life depended on it.

It hadn't occurred to me, nor did it bother me that her ego may have been hurt during the course of the night, but she would get over it. What did bother me was that two men from my own squad had dared to stray from the unspoken law that no one was to touch anything that I owned. Most of the men followed this law religiously, knowing how dangerous it could be to mess with me, but these new men needed to be shown how serious I was when it came to my belongings.

The 'warning' had indeed been for them, a warning that if they ever even thought about touching something that belonged to me again, and then to dare to warn me away from it, they would have a lot more than just a silly old war to worry about.

* * *

**A/N: **Just a side note, Sasori doesn't really know how he feels about Emiko, he just thinks he's defending his 'status' or whatever, since he calls her 'his' medic and he doesn't like other people touching his stuff.

Thought I should clear that up, I'm happy to answer any questions if I'm really confusing you with anything.


	8. Long Awaited Reunion

**A/N: **So I've just re-read the story so far, and it's such a contrast in mood compared to my DeiXOC story, Erase Me, since I'm writing the sequel at the moment and it's pretty depressing.

If you review, I'll continue to update.

Still a disclaimer!

* * *

**Long Awaited Reunion**

********** Emiko's POV **********

If Kichiro noticed the severe increase of tension as we walked in utter silence to our next destination, he didn't mention it. It was three days after the whole unmentionable incident, and the squad had been travelling for two days straight.

I had to say, they had an awfully strange travelling method, though I suppose when you're marching off to war, cautions such as this one were necessary. The way they worked, half of the troop would set off one hour before the rest, that way, if either hit a snag along the way, like an enemy ambush, they would not jeopardise everyone's lives and they could send for backup which would only be an hour away.

I blamed this method for my still not seeing Mina. It was sending me out of my mind and I let out a long groaning sigh as I trailed behind the redhead. An older warrior walking just in front of us, Tsutomu, turned his head as his pace slowed to match mine, ruffling me on the head as he arrived.

'What's up little smiler?' He grinned. The nickname came from 'Emiko', which actually translated as smiling child, due to the way my Kanji was written. It was irritating, but I'd heard worse.

'I just thought I'd have seen my sister by now.' I grumbled, swatting his hand away and earning a chuckle at my weak attempt. Tsutomu was the only male who seemed down to earth enough to have a decent conversation with, and also the only other warrior I could tolerate.

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, fingers skimming the rough stubble that he'd been working on. 'Your sister is Mina, right?'

'That's the one.' It wasn't surprising he guessed who she was, we did look similar despite the age gap. Then something struck me. 'Wait, have you seen her?'

'Oh yeah, here and there. But she's quite shy so I haven't actually spoken to the girl. Besides, she's usually busy cleaning up after that Uchiha, heh.'

My eyes shot to his, shock and fury mashing together in my wide purple irises. '_What_?'

Sasori made a weird choking noise, and slowed to walk beside the older male with a warning glare.

'Oh… Erm, yeah…' Tsutomu trailed off awkwardly, massaging the back of his neck and averting his eyes from mine.

Clenching my fists so tightly that my nails almost drew blood in my palms, I seethed through gritted teeth. 'Tsu-to-mu…'

Sensing the immediate danger, the older male spun around to walk backwards in front of us as he retreated further ahead, throwing Sasori and apologetic look before turning forwards again.

I glared at the red head, fighting down my temper. My chakra spiked furiously, jabbing at anyone within reach, including Kichiro. He glanced over questioningly, grimacing as his eyes landed on my furious expression.

Suddenly, Sasori huffed beside me, tilting his head to watch my reaction as he spoke. 'Before you fly off the handle, let me make you a preposition.'

I raised an eyebrow and bit down on my tongue, waiting to see what he had to say before I openly and ruthlessly tore him apart.

'If you promise to drop it for now and not make a scene–'

I opened my mouth to snap 'no promises', but he slapped a hand across my mouth before the words could form. The gesture stunned me momentarily, but I soon recovered to snarl and whack his arm away.

'Let me finish.' He stated calmly, as though talking down to a naughty child. 'If you promise not to make a scene, I will _personally_ bring her to you the second we reach our next location.'

I blinked at him, surprised as I debated my options. I doubted he was lying, since he'd never hear the end of it if he was and Sasori wasn't exactly one to tolerate nagging. Though the urge to slap him senseless was overpowering, I squeezed my eyes shut and counted to ten, slowing my racing heart. When the pounding in my chest had subsided, I slowly turned to look at him, and nodded once.

I expected some sort of smug smirk, but he simply nodded back and continued to walk in silence.

I frowned as I studied his neutral expression. I didn't understand him at all sometimes, which was a whole other issue in itself. I shook my head in disbelief that he had known the entire time and had never once thought to mention that my 12-year-old sister had been under the orders of that damn bastard Uchiha from the start.

Why hadn't he told me? What possible benefit could he have from with-holding that information? Then again, maybe that was why. It was no benefit to him whether I knew or not, so why should he care?

I growled softly as I realised I was right. Selfish jerk. A memory suddenly flashed into my mind at this thought. It was from the marketplace, back in Ookiimura, when Sasori had stepped in to stop that monster from flogging us in public. A small voice in the back of my mind whispered _'there was no benefit to him then either, so why bother?'_

I jolted in surprise as someone pressed a palm to my forehead. Refocusing my vision on the present, I glared at Kichiro, who was stood still in front of me, blocking my path.

'What?' I hissed, glaring as he retracted his hand as though bitten by a snake.

'A-are you feeling alright? You look awful…'

'You don't look that great yourself.' I snorted, only mildly offended.

'Emiko, you look really pale…' Sasori's voice buzzed in my ear, but I was suddenly having a very hard time concentrating on the figures beginning to crowd in front of me.

Taking a wobbly step back as I wafted a hand to warn them away, someone caught my elbow as I tripped and started to fall. After that, everything went black.

********** That night **********

'Koko? Can you hear me?' A small voice whimpered by my ear, something warm rubbing softly against the back of my hand.

_Am I dreaming?_

'Koko, wake up, please…' A small wet droplet landed on my cheek and trickled down my chin.

_Rain?_

My eyelids fluttered, and I squinted in the dim lighting as the blurry blobs of colour began to form shapes, then a figure, then features.

_Mina…_

My eyes shot open fully as I bolted upright on the soft material I had been lying on.

'Koko!' She sounded scared, the skin around her eyes tinted red as though she had been crying.

'Mina…' I breathed, and she dove at my, flinging her arms around my neck and squeezing until I coughed lightly at the pressure. 'Too tight! Choking!'

She pulled back and beamed at me, her pretty eyes flashing brightly even in the shadows. I took this time to take in my surroundings. I was in a tent, though it was small and cramped, and damp. I could hear a faint pattering on the thin material, which I interpreted as rain. Other than that, it was fairly plain looking, and eerily quiet outside.

'I was so worried about you! When they came to get me at our camp and told me you were sick I was so worried!' Mina spoke softly, as though not to disturb the peaceful atmosphere. The past few weeks finally started to dawn on me and I realised this must be where our half of the troops had set up camp, an hour away from Mina's. So someone had gone to get her?

'Are you alright? I can't believe it, I haven't seen you in so long. That Uchiha, has he done anything to you? Has anyone hurt you? Why weren't you at the gathering?' I babbled in a flurry, but stopped short when she laughed at me, her little voice ringing like a wind chime.

'I'm fine! Everything's fine. Sasuke hardly bothers me, he's always out. It's been pretty boring actually. Sasuke managed to get himself in a fight with one of the other squad members on the day of the gathering, so neither of us could make it. He got in pretty big trouble too, since there wasn't meant to be any spars when the new troops arrived… I missed you, Koko.'

I pulled her into another hug, gentler this time, and she explained that I must have passed out from exhaustion, since we'd been walking for two solid days. I recalled dully how, on the second morning, I had refused breakfast and opted to donate my rations to one of the other medics, who had looked a little frail.

'That's why I'm here, two of your troop came to get me immediately and brought me here to heal you, but there wasn't much to heal, you were just tired and hungry! You should have seen the look on Sasuke's face when they dragged me away, it was so funny!' She giggled at the memory.

'So he didn't come with you?'

'No, they just said they'd have me back by morning.'

'Who's 'they'?' I wondered out loud, and she frowned, and looked to the side as she tried to remember their names.

'One of them was really tall, with dark brown hair and practically black eyes…'

'Tsutomu?' I guessed and she nodded.

'And erm, Ki… Kichi-something?'

'Kichiro. He's the squire I'm working with.' I smiled at the idea of the pair of them scooping Mina away from the Uchiha without an explanation.

'Oh that reminds me, I have to go tell the other guy that you're awake!'

My eyes flickered to hers at her excitement. 'Other guy?'

'Mhm, the red haired one, I think he's the warrior you're healing?'

'Oh, Sasori. Is he injured?' I frowned, half rolling my eyes at his inconvenient timing.

'No.' She cocked her head to the side, confused. 'He wanted to know that you were okay. He was here for ages, but I told him to go and get some sleep 'cause I didn't know when you'd wake up.'

I blinked at her, slowly taking in what she had said.

She grinned and patted my head playfully. Crawling on her hands and knees to undo the entrance of the tent, she threw my once last happy grin as she slipped outside.

Left alone with my thoughts, I frowned. Why did Sasori care? Then it hit me. If I was incapacitated, then he'd be down by one medic and, since I was his only medic, he'd be in trouble if anything serious happened. Satisfied with my explanation, I sighed and let myself slide back down under the covers, only mumbling a soft greeting when Mina came back, and vaguely aware that she was talking to someone with her.

********** Mina's POV **********

When I got back Emiko's tent, she was already drifting back off to sleep, but that didn't seemed to bother the warrior too much. He hadn't even been asleep when I'd gone to tell him she was awake.

The low sheets of the tent blew softly in the wind as we crawled further inside, fastening it tightly again behind us.

'She was just tired really. She needs to eat something soon too, but she'll be fine.'

He nodded and gazed at my sisters sleeping form. He kept his expression blank, but I thought I could see a small smile playing on his lips in the dim lighting.

When Kichiro and Tsutomu had come to get me, I had been washing my hands in a small stream we had camped by. I thought they had been enemies at first, and screamed as they leapt out at me from behind some particularly thick bushes. Sasuke had appeared seconds later, alarm written across his face, but he relaxed instantly as he recognised the pair.

Without a second warning and before I knew what was happening, I was thrown onto the taller one's back as the smaller had shouted a quick 'we'll have her back by morning!' over his shoulder.

They explained on the way that Emiko had collapsed and that Sasori had ordered them to come find me immediately. I had thought that with such urgency she must either be dying or dead, and had started to cry along the journey. Kichiro seemed nice enough, comforting me and telling me she was probably just worn out, and thankfully he'd been right.

It was no lie when I had told Emiko that I had been fine, Sasuke barely bothered me apart from when he needed healing, and even then he was always polite, if not reserved. When the new warriors had arrived, he had even stuck up for me at one point when a gang of them tried to push me around.

I was lucky really. Emiko made him sound much worse, and I often found myself wondering what had gone so wrong between them. She had never had the courage to say.

Sasori shifted beside me, moving from his crouch to a more comfortable kneeling position. 'Has anyone stopped by?' He asked, a seemingly innocent question, but something behind his honey coloured eyes made me suspect something darker.

'Nope, just you.' I smiled lightly and he seemed mildly relieved.

'If anyone does, come find me immediately.' His eyes locked with mine, his expression dark and serious. I nodded reassuringly and he made to exit the tent, pausing to glance back over his shoulder. 'One more thing…'

I waited expectantly, but he seemed to change his mind and shook his head, turning back round to leave and muttering 'nevermind' as he went.

I found it strange, but dropped the thought as Emiko shuddered slightly, so I moved to snuggle under the sheet beside her, pressing my side against hers for warmth.

* * *

**A/N: **Aww I did a little Mina POV section. I didn't want to keep them separate any longer before Emiko really just lost the will to live.

It's all kicking off in the next chapter. So many plans…


	9. Sasori Vs one of the Fire Blade Four

**A/N: **Thank you to the people who reviewed last chapter! It makes me feel all fluffy inside. 3

Disclaiming as always.

* * *

**Sasori Vs one of the Fire Blade Four**

********** Emiko's POV **********

Saying goodbye to Mina again was hard. It pissed me off that I had slept through most of our time together, and then that they wouldn't even let me walk her back, but since we were staying put for another night here in this cramped little campsite, training was being resumed. Therefore, all available medics were required on site.

On the plus side, since they had no actual rooms to coup us up in, we were finally going to have some entertainment since we'd be able to watch the warriors fight.

I had to admit, I was curious about how Sasori fought. They announced the lineup for this morning promptly, and it didn't surprise me that almost everyone was paired with a new member of the squad. They'd have to get to know each other's battle techniques to be able to work as a team, I supposed.

What did surprise me was the hostility that Sasori's opponent already seemed to be showing him, glaring daggers from across the field. I recognised him as the blonde gangly one of the gang that had approached us during the squad gathering thing, so I figured he probably offended them after I'd wandered off. Typical.

'How can you have pissed them off already?' I muttered, in a considerably better mood after seeing how well my sister had been coping.

The redhead raised an eyebrow and followed my gaze to the lanky male, who was moving to lean against a tree. His expression soured for a second before he answered. 'He started it…'

I rolled my eyes at his childish retort. 'Whatever.' Clipping my water bottle to my hip, I settled down against a large rock, readjusting several times to get comfy. 'Hey Sasori?'

'Mm?' He didn't bother to look up from the scroll he was tucking in a free slot on his belt.

'Erm, thanks for, you know. Getting Mina for me.'

'I didn't get her.' He glanced over, briefly trying to gage my expression, but I did my best to keep it blank.

'You know what I mean.'

'Hm.'

I didn't let his vague response get me down, I was definitely looking forward to the events of today and was exceptionally curious about what all those scrolls were for.

The matches were to be no longer than half an hour each, and would run one after the other. The first two matches flew by, and I could already tell that Kichiro was buzzing with the thrill as he fidgeted beside me.

Finally, it was Sasori's turn. They announced the other man's name as Shige, from the Fire Blade Four, whatever that meant. I couldn't help but get chills as he sauntered into the centre of the field they were using as their battle ground.

'I've been waiting for this,' he sneered, his eyes flickering from Sasori's to mine. I frowned in confusion as he crouched into a ready-to-attack position, but when the whistle blew, neither moved.

'What are they waiting for?' I mumbled to Kichiro, who was practically bouncing off the rock in anticipation.

'Sasori never makes the first move, dunno about the other guy though.'

I turned my attention back to the stare off, until finally, the gangly newbie bolted forward, a sudden flare of chakra shooting to his feet. The redhead didn't budge an inch. Shige's fist pulled back swiftly before plunging it forward, perfectly aimed at Sasori's face. Right at the last second, his left hand gave a tiny twitch so fast that if I had blinked I'd have missed it. Shige's fist was frozen suspended in the air, a hair's breadth away from colliding with its target.

'I never get tired of that move!' Kichiro murmured under his breath, not wanting to disturb the silence that spread across the warriors.

Sasori's fingers twitched again, slower this time, and Shige was flung backward violently into a tree trunk. He groaned and spat out red, wiping the back of his hand across his mouth as he scrambled to his feet.

'Cocky bastard…' He snarled, charging again.

This time they both sprang forward, a flurry of red and yellow as they collided in the centre. I struggled to keep up with their movements until they broke apart abruptly, Shige panting slightly.

Eyes blazing furiously, he reached for the weapon that was tucked in its case on his back. Withdrawing a long shimmering katana, he channelled blue flickering chakra into the handle and I watched in fascination as the blade was set alite. _'Fire blade four' huh?_

As he made to dart forward again, weapon ablaze, I noticed that Sasori had unravelled one of his scrolls and had one palm pressed to its surface.

There was a great poof of smoke that momentarily engulfed him, but when the air cleared again, he was no longer alone. I stared in surprise at the man beside him, he had dark tanned skin and shaggy black hair. I couldn't see his face from where I was sat, but I certainly didn't recognise him.

Shige's eyes widened for a split second, but he regained his arrogant expression and resumed his attack.

The new stranger swooped forward almost as though gliding across the grass, a small dagger like object appearing from beneath one long sleeve. The pair met in a clash of flames and sparks as their metal scraped together, and I had to really concentrate to figure out who was winning.

'It's a puppet!' Kichiro's voice made me jump, I had been so absorbed in the scene before me.

'A what?' I frowned, confused.

'Sasori uses the puppet jutsu! He's awesome at it, isn't he?' He grinned, clearly enjoying the match. I smiled back at the enthusiasm.

The match was over at the twenty five minute mark, when both men had paused for a breather, panting heavily and exchanging death glares. Shige had sagged onto one knee, clutching one bleeding arm tightly as one eye closed with the pain. His injuries weren't severe, I noted, though they were enough to distract him plenty from the fight, putting him at a massive disadvantage, which Sasori had clearly noticed also.

He delivered the finishing blow himself, clearing the distance between them in seconds and effectively flooring the man with his fist. As Shige's medic and squire scurried into the field to help him walk, Sasori turned to head back to us.

I assessed him mentally as he did, picking up on a barely noticeable limp and several deep gashes across his middle from a particularly vicious attack somewhere in the middle of the match.

He slumped onto the grass beside me, not needing to be told twice to sit still as my hands glowed green. It was strange healing him with an audience, but I pushed their prying eyes to the back of my mind as I worked. They soon lost interest when the next match started almost instantly, between Tsutomu and another new troop.

Sasori winced as my hands slid over his abdomen, hurrying to stop the bleeding.

'Sorry…' I muttered as I concentrated. When I was satisfied with his stomach, I glanced up to check he was still conscious. He was watching me, his honey eyes glowing with some unknown emotion. To my horror, I felt a slight rosy blush spread over my cheeks as he stared, and my head snapped back to my hands as they moved to hover over his knee. I prodded experimentally with my chakra until I felt him stiffen, and I began my work on the joint.

'I knew you'd overreact.' He suddenly spoke, and my purple eyes found his again, confused.

'What are you babbling about now?' I mumbled, knowing full well that Sasori was not one to 'babble'.

'Mina being Sasuke's medic.' He stated, as though I should have been aware that this was the subject we were talking about.

'I didn't overreact! Besides I was unconscious for most of the time she was here…'

'I know.' He smirked, a knowing looking flashing across his face.

'Are you going to stop talking in riddles or shall I just give up now?' I huffed.

'I didn't tell you because I knew you'd overreact and start worrying about her even more.'

I watched his expression suspiciously, but he seemed genuine. I wondered absently why my excess worrying bothered him, but then I realised if I was worrying even more, it'd probably affect my job as his medic. Typical selfish jerk.

'Whatever.' I grumbled, getting back to fixing his knee and changing the subject. 'I've never seen the puppet technique used before.'

His eyes lit up briefly at the chosen subject, which was clearly a passion of his. 'That one is a favourite of mine,' he stated, referring to the puppet that had dominated most of the fight. 'I made it when I was sixteen.'

My eyes widened slightly at his words. 'You _made_ it?'

'Of course. Where else would I have got it from?' He asked, frowning as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

'How should I know?' I snapped, before swallowing my pride and lowering my voice. 'Anyway it was a pretty good fight.'

'Pretty good? Are you kidding, it was awesome!' Kichiro piped up, surprising me. I had forgotten we weren't alone.

I snuck a glance across the field to where Shige was snapping something at the medic who was fussing over his arm. It made me angry to see him being so rude to someone who was trying to do him good, and it must have shown on my face because I felt someone give me a soft shove on the shoulder. I turned back to see that Kichiro had gone back to watching the current match, and Sasori giving me an uncharacteristic, lopsided yet half-hearted smile.

Even though it was faint and lazy, the expression seemed alien on his face, making me stare a moment too long before shutting off my glowing chakra and mumbling that he was finished.

When I looked back, his attention was also directed to the current fight, which made me wonder if I had imagined it.

Later that night, I was moved into a larger tent, where Sasori and Kichiro had slept the night before, and where I should have slept, had I not collapsed and had Mina stay the night with me instead.

The sleeping bags were laid out side by side, the two end ones ruffled slightly, leaving mine undisturbed in the middle. It didn't bother me that I'd be sleeping so close to them until I woke up the next morning and found myself effectively nose to nose with a sleeping red haired warrior.

I froze, my eyes wide.

Holding my breath, I tried to manoeuvre myself backwards, but realised to my utter horror, that Kichiro's back was pressed up against mine.

My only escape route being up, I carefully shifted onto one elbow, letting out my breath as I successfully managed to prop myself up. Now, where to go from here? I couldn't exactly lean forward, but I had no room to lean back either. Gulping, I silently leaned forward ever so slightly to place one hand on the other side of Sasori's head to push upwards to my escape, but unfortunately, I failed to notice two sleepy hazel eyes watching me curiously.

'What _are_ you doing now?'

Needless to say, his voice scared the life out of me and my hand slipped with the force of my startled jolt. Reacting faster than any normal human should be able to at this hour, Sasori rolled onto his back and shifted instantly so that his hands caught my face just before it could slam against his in a horrifically embarrassing manner that I did not want to imagine.

Though I wasn't sure this situation was any better.

'Erm…' Kichiro's voice made both of us freeze.

Oh, how this must have looked. I took a deep breath as I assessed our position. I was essentially lying on his chest, my face, now matching his hair in colour, was inches from his, while his hands rested on either side of my head. Smooth.

I shot to my feet like a bullet, stammering awkwardly about it not being what it looked like, before all but flying out of the tent and racing through the trees to a nearby stream.

I threw water from my cupped hands over my hot face, scowling at the shimmering reflection. _I'm sleeping in a separate tent from now on._

My cheeks began to burn again as images of his face at such a close proximity began to seep into my mind. I was sure he had been blushing when Kichiro had 'interrupted', and it comforted me slightly that he felt as awkward as I had.

Then images from the squad gathering resurfaced, the memory of his lips forcefully against mine as his hand had curled in my hair against my neck. His breath had been warm on my neck as he whispered for me to trust him.

Slapping the surface of the water angrily, I shook my head violently at the intrusive memory.

Damn traitorous thoughts.

* * *

**A/N: **You've probably guessed, I hate writing fight scenes. I suck at it.

So I apologise, but I hope you enjoyed the rest of my writing considerably more.


	10. You Belong To Me

**A/N: **I love to torture my characters. Why do we do that, as writers?

I drew a picture of Emiko and Mina, if anyone's wondering what they look like. They're on my DA, my username is VampireBasket - The link will be on my profile :)

There's a complication thrown in this chapter. Hope you likey.

* * *

**You Belong To Me**

********** Sasori's POV **********

Explaining that situation had definitely been interesting, though in all honesty I really didn't care whether or not Kichiro believed me.

What interested me more was wondering where that ridiculous, clumsy, infuriatingly confusing girl had disappeared off to. She had refrained from using her secondary jutsu yesterday in public that I had gotten so used to, and my abdomen was itching like crazy from where her chakra had healed my injuries.

I scanned the camp but then, figuring she was unlikely to have sought the comfort of one of the other warriors, wandered off into the forest.

Crouching down by a trickling stream, I wet one hand and ran it through my hair in frustration. That was when I felt it. It was faint, but there was no mistaking the familiar flicker of chakra in the distance. I cleared the stream easily and wandered towards her chakra signature, absently wondering why she had strayed so far from the camp. Foolish girl, knowing there's a war on and everything.

But it wasn't long before I realised she wasn't alone, there was one, no two other presences accompanying her, and as I concentrated harder, I could feel her chakra spiking uncontrollably.

I broke into a jog, suppressing my anger as it bubbled in the pit of my stomach uncomfortably. I could be jumping to conclusions, but I highly doubted it was enemy warriors or even mere civilians, it was too close to the camp for us not to have noticed them. Which meant it had to be someone from the squad.

Masking my chakra, I jumped up into some low hanging branches, moving from tree to tree as I approached, until finally the three came into view.

Unfortunately, it was as I suspected. Satoshi and Shige, the bastards. She was backed up against a tree, breathing heavily and clutching her wrist, though she didn't appear to be in pain. One of them took a step forward and she flinched as his hand outstretched to touch her cheek.

A low growl formed in the back of my throat and, using the element of surprise, I leapt down between them, forcing them to jolt backwards at my sudden appearance.

'S-Sasori!' I heard her gasp behind me, but my attention was elsewhere.

'You again.' Satoshi spat, taking a few threatening steps forward to close the distance again. 'I thought we already warned you, we take what we want in this squad.'

I lifted one eyebrow in mild amusement. 'And I thought I made it perfectly clear that I wasn't listening.'

'Why you–'

'Let me handle him, Satoshi!' Shige barked, advancing and drawing his sword. 'You finish _her_ off.'

I glowered as he jabbed one lanky finger at the cowering girl behind me, but something caught my eye. The wrist that had withdrawn the sword was missing a silver bangle. My eyes darted to the larger male, and found that his was the same case. The taller one I was now glaring at seemed to catch my drift, and gave one throaty laugh.

Emiko's head suddenly fell forward to lean against my back, her breathing ever more haggard. I made to turn around to prop her back against the tree, but as I was momentarily distracted, Shige dove at me and I just barely dodging his sweeping kick that would have left a rather large bruise on my thigh.

'I owe you a rematch, puppet boy!' He snarled, charging again to hurl a series of annoyingly impressive slashes with his katana my way. In the midst of his attack, my eyes flicked back to Emiko and landed on her wrist. Sure enough, poking out under the hand that was pressed against her other arm was a silvery coloured bangle.

********** Emiko's POV **********

I don't know how he managed to track me down, but I was damn glad he had. I had been sat with my legs dangling loosely in the running water of the stream I had found when the pair approached me from behind. One had tugged me up harshly by the wrist, quickly forcing something cold onto my skin over my hand, which I later realised was one of their bangles.

I had managed to pull myself from their grasp but the other one had already slid his own bangle off and was coming at me from my other side. I had backed away until Satoshi, the taller one, activated the bangle on my wrist with some sort of jutsu I had never seen before. It glimmered blue for a split-second, and before I could realise what was happening I felt my chakra being pulled from my arm.

Panic engulfed me as I ran from the scene, desperately trying to rid my arm of the chakra sucking monstrosity, but it hadn't budged an inch, as though welded in place.

They caught up with me easily and Shige pinned me against a tree trunk while Satoshi made a grab for my free arm. Somewhere in the flurry, the bangle was knocked from his hands and I made to scream as it rolled away under some nearby bushes. A hand was slammed over my mouth as my chakra continued to drain.

They stayed like that, watching as I struggled uselessly against their weight, and within minutes, I was knackered. I cursed myself for helping to wear my own chakra down, but either way I hadn't stood a chance against them.

Satoshi chuckled at my mortified expression. 'Finally figured it out, huh?'

'She's not the sharpest tool, is she?' Shige had laughed along with his partner in crime, leaning forward to breathe into my ear, 'since that's all you're going to be from now on, just a tool…'

The tears started to spill from my eyes as I squinted through the exhaustion, scanning my brain for any means of escape.

That's when there was a flash of red and a wonderfully familiar back appeared standing before me.

I glanced over to where Shige was now forcing him away with a string of chakra enforced blows, and I prayed silently that none of them would hit.

'You're almost finished.' Satoshi's voice startled me, and I sank to my knees leaning forward on my open palms as I panted.

Suddenly an arm wrapped hastily around my waist, yanking me upwards with them as they leapt into the sky, landing heavily on a branch overhead.

'Stay awake…' A familiar voice mumbled as I was shifted onto their back. My eyes had slid shut, their lids now far too heavy to stay open, despite my best efforts.

There was an angry shout from below as the person carrying me took off, and I forced my eyes open just long enough to see a slumped, unmoving figure on the ground below.

A blast of chakra suddenly surged through my wrist and I gasped at the impact as it hit my heart, almost electrifying me awake. Sasori glanced over his shoulder questioningly at my sudden burst of life, before he landed swiftly and silently on the ground.

'Can you walk?' He started to lower me off his back, though his arm remained wrapped firmly around my waist as I wobbled.

'I think so…' I nodded, making another grab for the bangle on my wrist, this time it slid off easily to my surprise.

I flung it down on the grass in disgust. 'What the hell…' The redhead didn't have time to answer, as the second it hit the floor, Satoshi dropped down beside it from a tree in front of us.

'Bastard!' He snarled, diving at us forward with what looked like a flaming battle axe. One hard shove to the shoulder was all it took to send me sprawling out of the way of his attack, and as I scrabbled back up to my feet I was relieved to see that he had missed Sasori too.

'Get back to camp, Emiko!' He snapped angrily, but my feet refused to budge, eyes glued to the fight unfolding before me.

Satoshi's axe really _was_ flaming, and my eyes widened as Sasori only narrowly missed several particularly powerful swings that would have sent him flying had they connected with their target. His movements were fast despite his size, so Sasori barely had any chance to counter-attack. I bit my lip as he danced backwards again, just out of range of a foot that had been kicked forward furiously, but he winced as he landed awkwardly on the same leg I had healed after his match with Shige the day before.

I took a step forward uncertainly, my hand reached into the pack that I was incredibly thankful that I had brought out with me earlier that morning. My fingers curled around a small dagger I tried to keep with me at all times, though I wasn't really sure what I could do in this situation. My deliberation was cast aside when a particularly nasty punch connected with the redhead's stomach. Satoshi sneered and slammed the blunt wooden handle of his axe into Sasori's gut, reinforcing the previous blow and causing him to grunt in pain as he spat out blood.

Without thinking, I darted forward towards them, startling the opponent long enough for Sasori to get back to his feet. Now standing in between the pair, Satoshi flashed me a toothy grin as he made a grab for my neck, flinging me out of the way with ease. I crashed through several bushes violently, hissing as their branches tore at my skin and ripped my clothes. I could no longer see what was going on, but after several more grunts and snarls, the battlefield fell deathly silent.

Terrified of the outcome, I crawled cautiously on my hands and knees through the several me-shaped holes in the leaves. The first thing I saw was Satoshi, his dark eyes glassy and lifeless staring straight through me as I emerged from the bushes, a thin trickle of blood seeping from his mouth. I shuddered at his still form and averted my eyes to the second figure, standing a little way to the side.

He was panting softly and watching me carefully as I inched towards Satoshi's unmoving form. Keeping an arm's length away just in case, I stretched out to tough his neck lightly, recoiling hastily when I realised his pulse was non-existent. I stared at the man lying before me, only now spotting the nasty bone shaped lump at the side of his throat, and my breath hitched as I identified his neck as broken.

'He's dead…' I whispered, barely able to believe the words as I uttered them quietly. My mind reeled back to the clearing where Shige had been left unconscious, or so I thought. I struggled to my feet, head spinning as I slid back to the ground weakly. Sasori was beside me in a heartbeat, a vague flicker of concern littering his usually indifferent expression.

I gasped as he slumped to sit beside me, one hand clutching his stomach where Satoshi's fire powered axe handle had collided with him before I had interfered. I moved my hand over his, prying it away gently as he winced.

The scorch marks around the deep black bruise were my main concern, burns were harder to heal and if you didn't get there fast enough they could leave permanent damage.

Deciding to reverse my jutsu methods, I began to form the seals for my own bubble type technique, careful to avoid eye contact with my patient.

My bubble was filled with the subtlest compartments of chakra moulded with my water style, acting as almost a moisturiser for healed injuries. By my using it initially rather than last, I intended to sooth the burn until it was cooled and numbed enough to actually treat.

I could feel his hazel eyes on my skin as I worked, out of the corner of my eye I watched discretely as his gaze trailed up from my hands, up my scratched arms and over my tattered sleeves, until they landed gently on my face.

'You're hurt.' His stated plainly, not even the slightest trace of emotion lingering in his tone.

'Thank you, Captain Obvious…' I grumbled. I concentrated harder on my task and moved on to stage two, the actual healing process. We sat in silence for a while, as I healed and Sasori waited, unusually patiently. After a while, I spoke again. 'Shige's dead too, isn't he?'

It wasn't really a question, but he answered me anyway with a simple 'yes'.

'How are we going to explain that to the others?' I wondered absently. I hadn't really thought of what to do next, though I had my hopes pinned on Sasori to figure it out.

'That _is_ a good question.' He mused quietly, seeming almost amused as my eyes snapped up to meet his. 'Punishment even for liability for a comrade's death is execution, no exceptions.'

'W-what?' My chakra flickered nervously at his words. _Death? Surely not in all cases…_After a moment, I lowered my voice to barely more than a whisper, unsure of how he might take my next question. 'Sasori?'

'Hm?'

'…Why did you do it?'

He snorted, almost making me jump. 'Rather them than me.' It took me a moment to realise he was referring to the fact that he either had to kill them or be killed.

'No, I mean why did you erm, get involved in the first place?' I had finished healing his stomach, and moved my hands up slightly to heal a small cut on his collar bone, but his hand caught mine mid-air, giving it a quick yank and effectively pulling me forward so I was straddling his lap. I could feel my cheeks flush dreadfully as he held me in place, one hand curling around my waist firmly while the other reached up to trail a finger down my cheek.

His hazel eyes locked with mine, a smirk tugging on his mouth as he held me, trapped in his gaze. 'They needed to be taught a lesson for one thing.' He murmured, his mouth hovering millimetres from mine, a shiver running up my spine as his lips brushed against me as he spoke.

'But also because…' He trailed off as his lips skimmed my jawline as he moved to breathe softly against my ear, his voice soft and velvety, like melted dark chocolate. 'You belong to me.'

* * *

**A/N: **Just to clarify, there will be no lemons, just highly intensified fluff. Like fluff on fire. Flaming fluff…

I have too much time on my hands. :/


	11. Dilema

**A/N: **So I had this brief from uni, which should be fun, considering it's to design a half-human, half-animal character, complete with an animation motion test.

You're extremely lucky I have my priorities all wrong by writing this chapter instead.

* * *

**Dilemma**

********** Emiko's POV **********

I was sure he could feel my heart racing as he pushed me back gently but firmly until he was hovering over me, pinning me down.

'So fragile...' He whispered softly, still right next to my ear.

I froze as he breathed out slowly, his hot breath tickling the loose hairs by my ear. I could feel his smirk as his lips moved to brush over mine in an almost playful, feather-light gesture. I didn't respond, but for some reason, I didn't push him away either. I stared up into his hazel irises, his lids half shut lazily as he stared right back, as though trying to gage my reaction.

'Do I frighten you, Emiko?' I shivered as he drew out my name teasingly, his lips still touching mine as he murmured quietly against them.

I thought for a moment. I was frightened, damn right I was. But of him? I knew he wouldn't physically hurt me, after everything that's happened there'd be no point. After all, he had just killed two men in order to… In order to what though? Save me? Unlikely. From what I knew of him he was far too selfish to go out of his way like that just to protect me from some rogue squad members.

My eyebrows twitched ever-so-slightly at the realisation that, no, I was not scared of him. So why was my heart pounding this hard against my ribcage?!

I shook my head, the movement painfully slow as I debated even as I answered. His eyes flashed with something closely related to amusement as he tilted his face down to lean his forehead against mine. It irritated me to think that he was enjoying this, whereas from where I was lying, confused was not the word.

He chuckled softly at the half scowl I was giving him. 'Take that as a no…'

Finally finding my voice, I prayed the shaking was not as apparent in my voice as it was throughout my body. 'W-why are you doing this?'

His lips moved to brush against the curve of my neck, but I could still feel his confident smirk across my skin. 'Why does anyone do anything?' He mused, almost to himself rather than me.

I frowned at his riddling statement, but my expression was immediately replaced with surprise at the sensation of his fingers running gently down my braid. He had shifted backwards slightly so he could watch my terribly embarrassing reactions, and I cursed inwardly for being so damn entertaining.

'W-we should get back… If they come looking for us, they might find…' I didn't dare move my eyes to the cold, unseeing glass expression frozen in place not two meters away from where Sasori had me pinned.

His lips twitched slightly in an actual smile that was so rare it seemed foreign on his face. He bent his head smoothly to meet my lips again, a swift silent movement that I barely registered before he had withdrawn again. I met his gaze curiously, his hazel eyes soft, almost apologetic. I just didn't understand him.

He let out a soft defeated sigh, shuffling backwards to rock on his heels as he offered me an outstretched hand. I'm not quite sure why I took it so eagerly, but I could tell even he was surprised when my fingers – of their own accord – curled around his as I allowed him to pull me up.

I released his hand instantly, and the gravity of our situation came crashing down on me as I trailed after him into the trees. I glowered at his back, hating how he could act so cool and casual while I was eating myself up inside. He had said the punishment was death – no exceptions! How did he plan to get around that one?

Swallowing my pride, I forced myself to match his leisurely pace and stared up at him worriedly. 'What about those two?' I flicked my head to nod behind us.

He regarded me for a second with one almost amused eye, before looking back in the direction of the camp where we were headed. 'What about them?'

I stared at him incredulous. 'What do you mean 'what about them'?'

He rolled his eyes, lifting one hand to pinch the bridge of his nose in a somewhat irritated manner.

'Sasori! This is serious, what are we going to do when we get back? You said the punishment is–'

'Yes, yes I know.' His hand fell to his side again as he turned his head to face me calmly. 'It's not like anyone will miss them. Just do what you always do.'

'What I always do?' I frowned, confused. _What was he planning?_

He stopped walking and turned to face me fully, clearly irritated that he was going to have to spell it out for me.

'Emiko. Just act normal. No one saw anything, so as far as you're aware, nothing happened.'

My confusion fizzled out gradually as realisation dawned on me. 'So, we're not going to tell them… Then they'll think it was an enemy attack!'

He shrugged, nonchalant. 'Let them.'

I gaped at him. 'How can you act so casually about this?!'

He repeated his indifferent shrug, calmly stating 'I've killed people before,' before turning to stroll back through the trees.

I didn't follow him, instead I headed back to the stream where I had originally started off. I needed to be alone, to calm myself down and get my head straight before everything kicked off.

In truth, his words surprised me. I knew he had been trained in fighting long before this war was declared, that much was obvious from his fighting skill and style. But the thought that people had actually died by his hand before unnerved me.

Sasori was just so… blasé! Even when he was angry his expression always had a certain element of boredom to it, and I found myself having a hard time trying to picture him being particularly passionate about anything. Several unwanted images span through my mind of his face inches from mine, the feeling of his breath against my lips as I trembled involuntarily under his touch.

'Gah!' I made a noise of distaste and shook my head, clutching my two spikey buns of hair and pulling them tightly, as though trying to tear the memories out of my brain. 'What is _wrong_ with me?'

I scowled into the trickling water, jealous of how simply peaceful its life was. I missed home. I missed Mina. I missed everything that wasn't here.

I don't know how long I sat there, staring into nothingness as my mind reeled over the past few weeks, the past few days, the past few hours…

'Emiko!'

A voice floating on the wind caught my attention and my instant reaction was to panic. Smoothing out the stray hairs that had escaped from my braid, a vague attempt to look casual, I turned to face the direction of the voice.

'Emiko, where are you?'

'Kichiro?' I recognised the voice and relaxed slightly, rocking onto my heels into a half crouch half kneel position as I waited for him to arrive. 'I'm by the stream!'

A few moments later, he emerged through the fast descending fog that I had carelessly failed to notice.

The air was moist and cold, and I shivered as he approached, a strange, nervous expression written across his features. 'Emiko, you need to come back to camp with me immediately.'

'W-why? Is everything alright?'

'I don't think so. No one will tell me anything, they just sent me to find you as soon as possible.'

I gulped, forcing a confused frown as I stood up and stretched. 'Okay, let's go.'

The atmosphere in the camp was chaos. A large group of shouting and squabbling warriors congregating in the centre noisily until their leader, Tsuyoi, stepped up and all but roared into the midst of them, silencing everyone instantly.

'Thank you.' He breathed, rubbing his temples tenderly as he glared at his squad. 'Now, I must insist that everyone just takes five minutes to kindly shut up, sit down, and listen to how it's going to go.'

Glancing around the troops, I noticed that Sasori was absent. _Should I worry? No, I need to stay calm, like Sasori said. Act the way I always do._

I shifted my weight onto one leg and tried to remember to breathe as the squad captain continued.

'Now, for those that have not yet heard, or are wondering if the rumour is true, then I must unfortunately confirm that yes, two members of our squad were found not twenty minutes ago in the forest not far from here…' My hearted thudded ridiculously in my chest as my hands balled into clenched, sweaty fists by my sides. 'One has been confirmed dead, the other is in a critical condition.'

My jaw hit the floor and my heart came to a sudden abrupt stand still. _One of them survived…_

Kichiro must have noticed my reaction – it was hard not to, I was acting about a subtle as a gun – because he nudged my shoulder lightly with his, offering me a small reassuring smile, apparently mistaking my frozen state as fear.

'No one, I repeat, no one is to leave this camp unless I order them to. That is a direct order. We have a very serious situation on our hands here.' Tsuyoi glanced around briefly. 'Has Emiko Kiitana been located?'

My mouth was bone dry and arid, and though it opened and closed several times, no words came out.

'She's here, sir!' Kichiro called to the searching male, whose eyes snapped to mine.

'Come here, girl.' The leader's gruff, commanding voice addressed me, and I stepped forward reluctantly. 'Faster, girl, we don't have much time.'

I quickened my pace, stumbling twice on the uneven surface and gaining a few weird looks from the troops. I came to a standstill before the giant man, his incredible height only apparent when up close.

'Follow me.' I did so without question, he didn't seem like the type to be open to compromise or hesitation.

He led the way through the parting warriors to a small black tent. He opened the tent flap quickly and gestured for me to enter. It was only just large enough for me to stand, so poor Tsuyoi was practically bent double, though I didn't really feel all that sorry for him.

Inside was dark and damp, but surprisingly warm. The leader moved behind me, and after a moment the tent was flooded with a dim flickering light, which I identified as a swinging lantern hanging from the ceiling that I almost knocked my head on.

My eyes landed instantly on the thin bedroll laid out in the corner. My breath hitched in my throat at the sight of the hauntingly familiar man lying unconscious beneath the sheets. Shige.

'Emiko.' My attention snapped back to the giant behind me. 'I would like you to heal him.'

'What?!' I half screeched, unable to keep the obvious terror out of my tone. 'Why m-me?'

'Because from what I heard from your villagers, you're one of the best medics they have ever seen in the land of Wind. We need him to make a full, successful recovery in order to get to the bottom of the situation. You understand the seriousness of his condition, I assume.'

There was nothing I could say that wouldn't sound suspicious. I had to fight to stop my face from contorting guiltily as the thought of Sasori crossed my mind again. _Where was he?_ My eyes trailed to the 'patient', closing my eyes in defeat and nodding slowly.

'Okay. I'll do my best.'

'Very good. I will have Mari come to you immediately for any supplies you may need.' With that, he turned somewhat awkwardly in the small space and left.

I stared at nothing as I waited for Mari, not even bothering to check Shige's condition. I didn't want to go anywhere near him, let alone _heal_ him. She arrived quickly, babbling something about an extensive equipment list that they may need. I nodded along, though I was barely listening. It was only when she began to scrabble out of the tent that I came crashing back down to Earth.

If I healed him, and he remembered, Sasori would be killed, no exception. But if I didn't save his life… I shook my head harshly, making myself slightly dizzy at the force. There's no telling how he'd twist the story if he gained full access to his memory, and while I was more than adept at healing wounds, I lacked the ability to erase one's memory.

I felt awful. It shouldn't be like this, me deciding someone else's fate while they lay there before me on their death bed. This man's life was in my hands.

But then again, so was Sasori's…

* * *

**A/N: **Ohhh decisions, decisions. What will she do? Who will she save? And where _is_ Sasori? :O

I feel like God, messing with everyone's head and choosing between who survives… Now I sound like Pein. I am God!

Kidding. But I am done for the night, and I'm shattered.

OH, for future chapters, I'm going to include other Akatsuki members, throw me names of anyone you want me to include, since there'll only be a few of them in what I have planned so far, but if you want, I can squeeze in specific members :D See you next week!


	12. Confession

**A/N: **So I mentioned last chapter that I had a project to design a half-human, half-animal character. I went with an otter who walks on her hind legs and wears a skirt and has pigtails. Oh and she's called Olive.

Olive the Otter, original, I know.

Still a disclaimer of Naruto though. Unless there are any half human otters in there…

* * *

**Confession**

'How's he doing?' Tsuyoi asked, crouching in the open entrance of the tent and practically blocking the light entirely.

'He's… stabilised for now. We just have to wait to see if he makes it through the night.' I wiped the back of my hand over my brow, yawning lightly as I started to feel the effects of my depleted chakra. 'Umm, Tsuyoi, sir?'

'Hm?' The gruff response was muffled as he turned to leave.

Hesitating, I bit my lip. The words were on the tip of my tongue, but something held me back. 'Is everyone else okay?' I sighed, annoyed that I was still no closer to finding the illusive redhead.

'I think they're all a little on edge, understandably. They've been arranging a new set of shifts for the look-outs, in case the deaths _were_ an enemy attack.' He glanced back over his shoulder, finding a strange compulsion to confide in me. 'But in all honesty, I'm not fully convinced it was an enemy at all…'

My eyes widened as his voice trailed off. 'W-what do you mean?' I squeaked.

The leader chuckled at my startled expression, thankfully mistaking it for innocent fear. 'Don't worry, little duck. I'm probably just being overly cautious.'

The strange pet name drew my attention enough to recompose myself as I replied. 'You don't suppose they were killed by civilians?'

'No, no. Definitely not. Shige and Satoshi were two of my best. There's no way…' His eyes darkened as he shifted to lean into the tent, lowering his voice so only I could hear. '…I suspect we may have a traitor in our midst.'

Unable to contain my gasp, I stared into Tsuyoi's serious expression and whimpered. 'B-but… Surely not…'

'Emiko.' He turned his body to square off his shoulders, facing me fully. I felt trapped in his intense gaze as his intimidating size gave me chills, even in the small tent doorway. 'Those two were strong. Really strong. Not just any old warrior could have taken the pair of them down, especially not together. Now, I'm no fool, I know they managed to make a few enemies within the squad and that they weren't the most… _decent_ of men. However,' his eyes narrowed. 'There is no evidence of enemy tracks. Either we have a traitor, or a very strange coincidence on our hands.'

********** Sasori's POV **********

Tenacious. That's what he was. Annoyingly, infuriatingly and exasperatingly tenacious. I was glaring daggers at the bumbling fool blocking my exit, once again, from this God-forsaken claustrophobic tent. This was the fourth time I had attempted to leave, and equally the fourth time he had been in the way to stop me.

'We're all under strict orders not to leave our tents! There could be an enemy ambush at any moment! We must be prepared!' Kichiro pleaded, his arms outstretched to either side of him as he stood between me and my escape route.

'I'm always prepared.' I snapped sharply. 'Now get out of my way.'

'But Tsuyoi said–'

'KICHIRO, _MOVE_!'

The boy moved. Very quickly. I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose as I stepped into the cool evening air. Inhaling slowly, I released my nose and tried to ignore the niggling migraine at the back of my eyes. My feet moved of their own accord and, though I knew where they were taking me, I made no move to stop them.

Coming to a swift halt outside a dark, blacked-out tent in the centre of the camp, I hovered undecidedly. The tent entrance flap was suddenly flipped open, a small figure stumbling out and almost crashing headfirst straight into me. I smirked, knowing who it was before she even stood up. There's no one else quite that clumsy.

'Emiko.'

She gaped at me, fumbling with her hands as she rebalanced 'S-Sasori! Where have… I was just…'

I rolled my eyes as she stuttered. 'Everyone's been confined to tent prison. I'm surprised they haven't told you that.'

Her cheeks flushed bright red as I stared at her. _What the hell is that all about?_ Embarrassment? Guilt? With Emiko, it could be anything.

'Sasori… I erm, Tsuyoi told me that…' She winced as I huffed impatiently and changed her method. 'I was assigned to heal Shige. He was in critical condition, but I managed to stabilise him and so told Tsuyoi that we'd just have to wait till morning to see if he pulls through…'

I had suspected as much, but her posture was nervous, her eyes flitting around the camp as she shifted her weight from one leg to the other. The way she was acting made me think there was something she wasn't telling me. Something important.

Before I could ask, she spoke again softly. 'Tsuyoi told me that he thinks someone from the squad did this…'

She watched my expression expectantly, foolishly waiting for me to either break down and panic or smile and reassure her that everything would be okay. But I was no fool. Everything was not okay, but neither was I worried. What will happen, will happen.

When I didn't reply, she shuffled uncomfortably. 'I have to tell you something else though…'

Her voice was barely audible, but the next words she whispered rang loud and clear in my ears. I blinked and stared at her curiously, deciding on whether or not she was actually capable of something like that. She returned my stare with a hard look of her own, her mouth tightening into a thin line as she tried in vain to read me.

Finally, I let out a soft breath and beckoned for her to follow me. I led her to the tent she had slept in the night before when Mina had stayed the night. It was unoccupied, as I had thought it would be.

She followed me in surprisingly calmly, her orchid eyes allowing an uncharacteristic display of trust seep into her expression as I fastened the flap behind her.

She shifted herself onto the sleeping roll that had been left in the tent, sitting on her bum with her legs folded out on either side. I turned to face her, careful to keep my expression blank.

'Right, now say that again.'

She dipped her head, her hands gripping her knees as she mumbled beneath her breath, 'he's not going to wake up…'

I ran a hand through my hair and sighed. Well this was an unexpected turn of events. 'What did you do?'

'Well, it's more of what I didn't do…' Her eyes avoided mine expertly, obviously ashamed of what she was admitting. 'He was… bleeding internally, it was putting pressure on his brain and therefore keeping him in a comatose state… He won't last much longer though like that. I stopped the bleeding but there's still excess blood on his brain.'

I watched her silently for a moment. When her gaze finally lifted to meet mine, I expected to see guilt, fear, regret. But what I got was very different.

She was… smiling?

********** Emiko's POV **********

When I finally plucked up the courage to look him in the eyes, I couldn't hold back the smile that was tugging on my lips. It was ridiculous, I must have seemed like a crazy grinning fool, but I didn't care. I had made my choice, and amazingly, I felt no regret.

My expression faltered slightly as I recalled the way the pair of bastards had trapped me and terrified me, outnumbered me and claimed me as their 'tool'. They both deserved to die, and while I knew damn well that it was far from my place to decide on whether they lived or died, I simply didn't care.

Sasori's eyebrows had knitted together in a vague expression of concern, and my heart thumped at the thought that he might actually be worried for me. I hadn't realised how closely we were sat, but when his hand reached out to stroke the back of his fingers down the side of my cheek, I found myself leaning into his touch.

His hazel eyes were hypnotisingly soft as he slid one arm around my waist to slide me closer, seeming mildly surprised when I didn't protest.

Our faces now inches apart, I shuddered as his free hand moved around the side of my neck to twist lightly in my hair. He moved his head closer still, but when his mouth was a mere hair's breadth from mine, he paused abruptly and hovered, as though waiting for permission.

I was confused at first, being used to having such a severe lack of choice in the matter, so his hesitation threw me. His eyes bore into mine, intense and penetrating, until my eyelids caved under his dominating stare and I surrendered, my lips colliding with his in a locked, heated kiss.

I was surprised by how easily I was coping with the whole, peculiar situation. In fact, I wasn't entirely sure any of this was actually happening, half expecting to wake up suddenly and find Mina sleeping soundly in the other room while our mother boiled the kettle in the kitchen.

I was heavily reminded that I was not, in fact, dreaming as my heart fluttered when the redhead broke away to nibble his way down my jawline to my ear.

I supressed a gasp as his teeth sank into my neck and I inwardly cursed at the idea of the inevitable line of love bites he was working particularly hard on. When his face came back up to meet mine, his eyes were dark and intense, though I only caught a brief glimpse before they snapped shut as he leaned into me again, his arm tugging me closer so I was practically sat straddling his waist.

My hands flew to grip his arms, more for balance and initial shock at the proximity, but I soon found them wandering of their own accord across his shoulders and around the back of his neck. Gently at first, I ran my fingers through his unruly red hair, surprised at its softness as I experimented with my newfound confidence.

His tongue danced across my mouth and, when I was unable to hold back another intake of breath, took advantage of my parted lips and twisted skilfully with mine. He leaned forward again, holding me against him as he continued to move, his kisses never ceasing once. I shifted slightly in my new position as I lay on my back, my cheeks reddening as he pulled back to stare at me cautiously. Our foreheads touching, his deep brown eyes were clouded and wary, but there was something about the way his lips were curled slightly that made my heart race.

I'd never seen this side of him before. It was almost… insecure?

'Are you sure?' He murmured quietly, and his breath blew softly across my face as I nodded slowly.

Before I knew what was happening, our lips moulded together again and a small moan had escaped my throat at the action. The noise only seemed to spur him on further, as our tongues locked once more, his clearly dominating my weaker, inexperienced one. His hand trailed up from my waist to rest against the side of my face, his thumb tracing small circles against my lower cheek.

His other hand repeated the same action against my waist, sending uncontrollable shivers up my spine as I subconsciously arched into him, though I barely spared a thought for my traitorous body.

When he broke away to nuzzle his face into my neck, his hands slid to my legs, hitching them over his hips as he lay pinning my down. I surprised myself when I responded willingly by curling my legs around him, earning a smirk which I felt against my ear.

'Someone's eager…' He teased. His voice was low and husky, which made my arms tighten around his neck, one hand clutching a fistful of red hair.

'Shut up…' I mumbled against his lips as they met mine again, my eyelids fluttering shut as I allowed him to take the lead.

I wasn't really thinking about the aftermath, neither was I think about Shige, or what I had done. My mind lacked focus on anything other than this moment, the here and now. Tomorrow was another day, another problem. But for now, I was here with him, and no one and nothing else mattered to me. I felt free.

* * *

**A/N: **If anyone has seen 'Mamma Mia', this is that 'dot dot dot' moment in her mum's dairy.

I'm thinking about starting a new HidanXOC fic, about a girl on the run who knows him from the past, and their lives keep crossing paths. What are people's thoughts on that?


	13. Just Like That

**A/N: **Sorry this chapter sucks a bit, but it's really just the transition chapter to get the story moving along, I hope it doesn't seem too rushed.

Review and I'll be motivated!

Disclaimer: I STILL don't own Naruto, damn it.

* * *

**Just like that**

It was hardly surprising when I returned to the land of the conscious to find myself wrapped up in a blanket alone and back in the medical tent where Shige was being held. I didn't exactly have Sasori pegged as the 'morning after' type.

I rolled onto my back and stretched, but the memory of the patient I was supposed to heal came flooding back all too soon, and I froze mid-stretch in horror. _What had I done?_

My head snapped to the side as I shot upright, staring with unbelieving eyes at the motionless figure lying on a thin bedroll not five feet away. I shuddered involuntarily as I suppressed the urge to scream and pull all of my short brown hairs out of my head. This was not going to be easy, keeping a straight-face over the next few days. I scowled at my own thoughts, I even sounded like a murderer. Because really, that's what I was. Regardless of my reasons, I had indirectly murdered this man, and nothing anyone said or did could change that.

The squad leader was less than pleased, to say the least. He had entered the tent shortly after I had awoken to check on Shige's condition, but one look at the man's cold dead body had been enough to confirm what I was about to tell him.

Despite everything, the leader offered me a reassuring smile, only proving to fuel my guilt when he patted me lightly on the head and murmured, 'I'm sure you did everything you could.'

Once again, Sasori was AWOL. I wasn't surprised, he was more than likely trying to distance himself from the situation, trying not to draw attention to himself. And I can't say I blamed him. A small part of me felt hurt, that he would up and disappear again after everything that had happened.

Trudging solemnly to my own tent, I was greeted by a less than enthusiastic Kichiro, who sighed sadly as I entered. 'Any news?' He asked, a hopeful glint in his eyes that I promptly demolished.

'Only bad, I'm afraid. Shige passed away overnight. There was…' I gulped audibly before forcing myself to continue. 'There was n-nothing I could do.'

To my surprise, the squire then proceeded to envelop me in a comforting hug, wrapping his arms securely around my waist as I froze at his touch. This was the last thing I deserved.

'Don't worry, we'll get to the bottom of these murders. If there is an enemy lurking out there, we'll find them.' He promised, pulling back slightly to give me a determined look.

I nodded, a weak smile crossing my features as I tried my best to convince myself that he was wrong. They couldn't find out, because there was no evidence. There was absolutely nothing that could suggest a scuffle between members, not even left in the forest.

We lingered another three days in that camp site. Obviously, Tsuyoi had wanted to make extra sure that there was nothing that could provide any further insight into what had happened.

I was more than relieved when he finally announced we were moving off again. I almost smiled. Almost. Had I not been standing so close to Kichiro that morning, I probably would have.

The next few weeks were uneventful. They were saying now that we were only two days away from reaching the battleground, and my nerves grew more with every passing second. Sasori was no help, he had become somewhat withdrawn after the whole Shige incident, and I was positive Kichiro had noticed.

Though on the rare occasion I was left alone with the redhead, he acted no differently to how he had just before everything had turned sour. He still threw me sarcastic remarks about my nagging, and was still as stubborn as ever when it came to my healing him.

'You know, for a medic you're very unsympathetic.' He had informed me one time.

'What the hell is that supposed to mean?' I scowled at his wrist as I continued to knit the broken bone back together that had snapped after a particularly nasty spar. 'I still can't believe you broke your own wrist.' I grumbled.

True enough, he had broken it himself somewhere in the midst of the fight. His opponent possessed a strange technique in which it allowed the user to bend and stretch any body part they wanted. He'd managed to wrap his arm in a tight spiral around the redhead's wrist, squeezing like a boa constrictor and cutting off the blood supply. That's when, for some bizarre reason, Sasori had seen fit to land a blow so hard to his opponents arm that his chakra cut straight through both his wrist and his spar partners arm.

'Pain is relative.'

'Whatever you say.' I muttered, ignoring his usual riddles. 'And I am not unsympathetic! It's just in this case, it was your own fault. I don't see the point in sympathising with something so idiotic…'

'What would you have suggested I do?' He raised an eyebrow seeming genuinely curious, but I could see the beginnings of a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.

'Oh, I don't know, maybe yield?' I spat, purposely tugging a fragment of bone back into place harshly with my chakra, holding back a smirk when he winced.

Despite the sudden shooting pain I'd caused in his arm, he scoffed in response. 'You can't yield in a war, Emiko.'

'Well, that's what spars are for. People with broken wrists don't survive long in war anyway, as far as I know.'

He was quiet for an uncharacteristically long time, finally making me glance up to check he was still conscious. 'What, no witty comment to throw back about that?'

He half-smiled and stated plainly, 'I was just wondering how you withhold such a high intensity sarcasm level at all times.'

I stared for a moment, but scowled again when I decided he was laughing at me, internally or not. 'It's a superpower. Several years ago I was bitten by a radioactive mule.'

He let out a sharp breath and rolled his eyes while I chuckled at my own comment.

That had been two weeks ago. Most of our encounters followed similar conversations where I'd scold him, he'd ignore me, and then we'd start all over again. The 'stubborn cycle', as Kichiro had taken to calling it.

So here we were, setting up camp for what was supposed to be the final time. I had been sitting beside the tent that Kichiro was struggling to put up by himself, ripping out fistfuls of grass and pleasantly informing the squire each time the wind picked up and blew his pegs away.

It was amusing for a while, until Sasori's impatience arrived.

'How long does it take to put up a tent, boy?'

I frowned at the term, Kichiro was a similar age to me, and I doubted Sasori was much older.

'S-sorry! The wind is quite strong at the moment…' The squire threw me a sideways glare and muttered something incoherent about laziness.

'Why aren't you helping him?' Irritated honey eyes turned to me.

'I'm a medic, not a squire. Besides, I _am_ helping. I'm his moral support.'

'If you help, I'll consider letting you see Mina again.' He offered, but I could see past his bored expression, he was way too lazy to do that. Besides, we weren't far off the general meeting point now, so I'd be seeing her anyway.

'Nice try, but I'm not stupid.' A smug grin crossed my face as the redhead growled lightly in agitation, but before he could say anything further, a voice from behind caught our attention.

'Don't bother with that. We're moving out again.'

'Why?' Sasori questioned the other warrior that had approached. He was tall, with pale brown hair flopping over his eyes almost low enough to cover them both. I bit back a remark about him needing a haircut.

'Leader says, Chitani are onto us, they've marched out to meet us already, and they'll just plough through all our defences if we sit around and wait for them to arrive. So we're moving out. Now.'

The red head nodded and turned back to Kichiro, who had already begun to gather the pegs together again. 'Leave that. We won't have any use for tents from now on.'

The squire gulped, dropping the material and watching absently as it flapped and rose into the air, free for the wind to whip it away. I patted him lightly on the shoulder and smiled reassuringly, not missing how pale he had become. 'Let's go.'

He nodded and followed my lead hesitantly.

We walked solidly for another twenty-four hours, trekking through rough mountainous terrain that none of us were used to. The squad finally gathered in the final destination where we would all be together and the squires set about building the camouflaged khaki medical tents in the shadows of the trees around us.

Tsuyoi currently stood atop a particularly large boulder, barking out orders and giving his inspirational speech. I let out a soft breath as I listened, only vaguely paying attention. My gaze wandered from his powerful form to the redhead beside me and was surprised to find him staring back.

He shifted his gaze back to the leader as he spoke, just loud enough for me to hear. 'I do wish he'd get on with it.'

I felt a pang of nostalgia as he muttered about things being dragged out so much, and I had to hide a smile at his impatience. He seemed to notice though, raising an eyebrow.

'Hasn't anyone ever told you, patience is a virtue?'

He threw me a disgusted look, glaring like I'd just suggested something outrageous.

'Apparently not…' I chuckled in response before Tsuyoi caught my attention again.

'…and obviously you've all been briefed on the battle plans and strategy. I would now like all warriors to assemble at point A as indicated, from there I will be assigning you to teams of five and we shall move out immediately. I have received word from the other squads, who will be doing the same so you will be likely to meet on the battlefield.' He paused to incline his head momentarily. 'I would like to solemnly thank you all in advance for your efforts and hard work. I sincerely hope to see you again.'

With that, the crowd scattered and I knocked backwards slightly, grumbling as I rebalanced. My eyes scanned the sea of people but I cursed as I realised I'd lost sight of Sasori.

Squeezing between bodies, I managed to emerge on the other side of the giant tent that had been erected. Several bed rolls were laid out in a make-shift hospital layout, with crates and rocks placed beside each one to be used as tables and equipment storage. My expression darkened as I realised this was it. We were here. We were at war.

Before I knew it, the troops had moved out, and just like that he was gone. I didn't see him leave, I didn't even get to say goodbye. I tried to swallow the lump that was rising in my throat, but I couldn't deny that I was hurt. A small hand wrapped softly around my own, fingers curling together as I stared ahead at nothing. I hadn't even noticed her approach.

'It'll be alright, Koko. We're together now.'

A single tear dripped from my eyes as she spoke, my heart swelling at her words. It shouldn't be like this, I was the oldest, by seven years! I should be comforting her. And yet here she was, small hand in mine, seeming so much older and wiser than her 12-year-old body suggested.

I pulled her into a tight hug, mumbling into her hair as she returned the gesture. 'I know, Mimi. It's all alright now.'

* * *

**A/N: **So the troops have left, the medics are set for work, and Emiko and Mina are together again. Everything's back on track…Right?

-Insert evil author laugh here-

Major plot twist coming up. Guesses anyone?


	14. MIA

**A/N: **So this is the chapter where it all kicks off… I hope you like it.

Review and I'll reply!

Disclaimer.

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**M.I.A**

The days dragged on, long tiring days of healing and waiting, healing and waiting. The injured warriors came in batches, usually in the mornings until noon and the evenings between six and nine, which we had taken to calling rush hour.

We did not work in shifts, but instead all medics were required on scene at all times with breaks throughout the day. But to be honest, we didn't need them. It was fairly quiet apart from the rushes, with only the occasional warrior stumbling in or being dragged by a teammate. It made the days drag, but I suppose the lack of injuries was a good thing.

My mind frequently wandered the red-haired warrior I had been assigned to heal. I wondered where he was, and if he was still alive out there. I always shuddered at that last thought, pushing it to the back of my mind and focusing intently on whatever I was doing at the time. I took to cleaning in the quiet periods, furiously scrubbing the bed rolls clean and wafting them around to dry. When that was finished, I'd move on to find more tedious jobs to do. Anything to keep my mind busy.

People came and went all the time, updating us on the war's progression and stocking up any medications or equipment we needed.

Kichiro stopped by to catch up every now and again, but other than that, I didn't really recognise anyone. The squires worked in a camp a little way away, sharpening and creating weapons and supplying armour or guarding prisoners when necessary. I had to raise an eyebrow at the thought of Kichiro guarding a prisoner, but there we go.

Then when a familiar face finally did arise from the fray, it was not in the most pleasant of situations.

'So, this is where you've been hiding from me?' He smirked through the pain as I prodded the scorch marks unnecessarily harshly.

'Shut up, Uchiha.' I glowered and continued to heal his shoulder that had definitely seen better days. An angry scarlet rash had begun to form around the edges of the burn he'd received, though several days old, it'd obviously been giving him trouble. 'Just how old is this burn, exactly?'

He pursed his lips thoughtfully. 'I'd say about 2 days… Maybe 3'.

I rolled my eyes and muttered, 'thanks for the accuracy,' as I dabbed it with a damp cloth.

'Someone's touchy…' He grumbled, but grinned when Mina came to stand beside me. 'Hey squirt, I was wondering how you were getting on.'

'I'm fine, you on the other hand…' She smiled at him despite his nasty looking injury, and I couldn't hold back the angry spike in my chakra at their polite greetings for each other.

I finished healing his shoulder as hurriedly as possible, before stalking off to the medical cabinet on the far side of the tent to find some anti-infection gel, Mina at my side.

'So, why _do_ you hate him so much?' She piped up once we were out of earshot.

I winced at her question, not having expected it. She'd never questioned my hatred for that bastard before, odd that it should come up now. I sighed, throwing her a withering glance. 'I just don't get on with him. He was an arrogant jerk back in high school and he's only gotten worse since then. And he has stupid hair.'

'Those reasons don't make you hate someone as strongly as you do!'

I cursed her intelligent little mind as she peered up at me with purposely large eyes. I caved. 'Urgh, fine. It annoyed him in school that I was one of the only girls who wasn't head over heels in love with him… He used to seek me out excessively just to annoy the hell out of me, then one day… he went too far.'

Mina tilted her head, watching me curiously, and I hoped that she was reconsidering pressuring me into answering, but she didn't stop me.

'He made me–'

'Oh Emiko! There you are, I have a patient over here who's been asking for you.'

I could have hugged the woman that interrupted my confession, throwing Mina a 'duty calls' shrug and skipping off in the direction she'd pointed. Her patient had a simple broken foot, nothing life-threatening but it would take time to heal. I numbed the area and excused myself momentarily. I wanted to ask Sasuke something before he disappeared back into the battle, so reluctantly made my way back over to his bedroll.

'Couldn't stay away, huh?' He smirked, eyebrows raising suggestively.

'_Actually_,' I scowled, making it clear he was the last person I wanted to see. 'I was wondering if you, erm, knew anything about… Erm…'

He cocked his head slightly at my deliberation, waiting for me to spit it out.

'…if you knew a-about how Sasori's doing out there?' I finally managed, failing to hide the slight stutter as I debated even now taking the question back.

His eyes widened a fraction, as he stared, suddenly serious. 'I thought you'd have heard about that…'

'About what?' I probed, my throat clamming up nervously, suddenly regretting my decision to ask.

'…He's been M.I.A pretty much since the start of the fighting. The group he had been with were found slaughtered in a heap about 2 miles from here…'

My stomach lurched, freezing in place as I stared at the Uchiha, searching for any sign of a joke, but his black eyes remained calm and sombre. M.I.A. meant missing in Action, but how could that be? He was so strong during the spars… His team had been found dead, so that meant he wasn't with them, right?

'Oh. I-I hadn't heard…'

But then, _missing_ didn't necessarily mean _dead_…

********** One week later **********

It had taken us all by surprise, the ambush. It was swift, unexpected, and completely sudden. They came out of nowhere, and yet from every direction. Enemy warriors darting in and around the medical camp, slicing through the life of any of our troops in healing with ease. It was an unfair advantage, killing a man in a hospital bed. A pathetically low blow that I despised with a passion.

They rounded the medics up after the camp was clear of eligible fighters, Mina and myself included, though I kept her squashed tightly into my side with one arm wrapped possessively around her shoulders. There was no way in hell I was letting her go this time.

One man stood out, his dark shaggy hair spiked scruffily around his scalp while one, cruel eye scanned his prey almost proudly. He had a black sash tied over the other eye, but I could see even at a distance a long ugly scar slanting up and across his eyebrow.

He gave the other men a nod, and they began to shove us forward. I'm not sure how long we walked for, but when we eventually did arrive at our destination, it was obvious we were deep into the land of Chitani. We were fast approaching what looked like a fortress, and I had to supress a shudder as we entered.

The man who greeted us is one I'll never forget. He was both white as a sheet and black as the night. His skin tone split right down the centre in a perfect division, while his head sported a short mess of unruly green hair, spiking out in all directions. Erupting from his shoulders and enclosing around his head, was a giant, olive coloured cage-like object, resembling something akin to a Venus-fly trap. Not at all intimidating. Oh no, not in the slightest…

'Master Zetsu,' One-eye inclined his head respectfully, gesturing to us behind him. 'Our mission has been completed successfully. Your orders, Sir?'

The two-toned male blinked owlishly, his eyes scanning casually over the crowd behind the man as though choosing something simple like his next meal.

'Take them straight through. Set them up immediately.'

'Yes, Sir.'

The lead warrior spun around, flicking one hand over his shoulder to signal for us to move along again. In this situation, we would have done so even without the other enemy warriors forcing us forward from behind.

Mina still clung awkwardly to my side as we walked, thought I didn't dare push her away for fear of never seeing her again.

They shoved us forcefully into a tunnel-like structure and down a long narrow corridor, leading after what seemed like hours into a giant arena-type room, with walls surrounding it that went almost to the ceiling. On top of them and all around the arena ring were stone carved seats, and I shivered nervously as I wondered what they used this room for. Prisoner fighting sprung to mind, but I immediately squashed that thought as quickly as it had come.

The one-eyed man paused when he reached the centre of the ring, turning to face us.

'You are in the Land of Chitani now, you will from hereby out, continue your healing work for _our_ warriors.' He stated bluntly, glaring as an eruption of disgusted whispering engulfed him from his prisoners. Well, what did he expect? That we'd just bow down and obey his every command without question? No way. This jerk had another thing coming if that's what he thought…

'Silence!' He snapped, earning several worried glances but not the compliance he was after. So he tried again. 'The next person to open their God-damn, filthy mouth is a dead man.'

_Now_, he got silence, despite our group being all women.

'Right. You will be situated in this area at all times, unless ordered otherwise from one of our men. If anyone is caught trying to leave without permission by either of the two exits to this room, they will be killed on the spot, no excuses. You will heal here, you will sleep here, and you will more than likely die here. So anyone who tries otherwise, will only be accelerating their death. There will be no conferring with the other members as you work, and you will work quickly, silently and effectively, without question. Do I make myself perfectly clear?'

For a moment, nobody dared to breathe.

'DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?' He screeched suddenly, shocking everyone into submission.

There were several murmurs of agreement from the medics, though I noticed, like myself, Mina said nothing throughout the ordeal.

He looked about to leave, when a light bulb sparked from behind his one cruel eye. 'Oh and one more thing…'

The eye that was now swooping over the crowd, like a lighthouse scanning the ocean for any stray ships, paused and hovered in me and Mina's direction. My hand that had subconsciously gripped my sister's shoulder tightened, and she glanced up at me worriedly.

He started to move towards us, parting the crowd like the red sea and stopping just inches away from us. I shoved Mina behind me as I withheld a gulp, my eyes meeting his in an intense stare-off that lasted mere moments, before he broke my trance by snickering and turning to the other guards.

'This is her alright. Purple eyes that could burn holes through your head and melt the polar ice caps in the process.'

My stare changed abruptly to a glower, snarling when he reached a hand out to grab my wrist, which only made him laugh harder.

'And more stubborn than a sedated mule.'

He didn't give me another second to dodge, before I could blink I was flung over his shoulder kicking and screaming bloody murder as he strolled casually out of the room. I was vaguely aware of Mina calling my name, but I was so busy concentrating on scratching this guy's one remaining eye out, that I couldn't even spare her a glance.

He soon changed positions and, with the assistance of another warrior, carried me the rest of the way by my wrists, with his helper securing my legs. I could only hang there bitterly chewing on my lip as I scowled with all my might, occasionally growling when he'd laughed at my expression.

'Where are you taking me?' I snapped when I finally plucked up the courage to speak.

'You'll see soon enough. Now hush.'

'Fine, but only if you let me walk by myself, I look like you hunted me!'

He chuckled at my choice of words, but glanced at the other male for his opinion.

'It's not like I can escape, where would I even run to?' I cut in before he could get his approval. The other male just shrugged anyway, so reluctantly, they let me drop to the floor.

'Gee thanks…' I grumbled as I got to my feet, dusting myself off.

Suddenly his hands clamped onto my arms, securing me in place while the other male wrapped rough material around my eyes, blocking out the light as he blindfolded me. 'What the–'

'Can't have you trying anything, missy.' _Ah well. So much for that plan._

'Now move.' One-eye pushed my shoulder sharply, forcing me forward a few steps as he followed close behind.

And so we walked. Well, they walked, I stumbled, mostly in silence, though I did drop him the occasional string of curses when he got too close for comfort. I was starting to wonder if even _they_ knew where they were taking me, and then I wondered why. _Why me?_ The incredible sense of impending doom was beginning to dawn on me, and I had all but lost hope when the man I was trailing after suddenly stopped outside a door, making my bump into his back unceremoniously. I glanced up at him curiously, squinting through the blindfold and coming up blank.

Three short knocks followed a moment of silence, then old One-eye spoke. 'We have the prisoner you requested, Sir.' I felt the one beside me shift forward and open the door, then the next thing I knew, I was being flung forward and just barely managing to stay on my feet.

'Have fun.' One-eye whispered under his breath, and as the blindfold was whipped away from my eyes, I turned just in time to see them disappear behind the door we'd just entered through.

I could hear someone in the room behind me, and my breath hitched in my throat. Agonisingly slowly, I began to angle my body around to face them. At first, I didn't see him, but when my orchid irises gradually made their way to the windowsill, they widened.

I mouthed silently for several seconds, my bulging eyes meeting his and locking in a rabbit-caught-in-headlights kind of stare. Deep topaz versus bright amethyst.

'Y-you…'

* * *

**A/N: …**Any guesses? :P

Also, I am AMAZED that someone actually blatantly guessed the twist. Well most of it. I'm seriously impressed though BloodyCamellia, I actually thought I'd been really subtle, so kudos to you! Though I hope it doesn't disappoint you…


	15. Akatsuki

**A/N: **So here it is! The chapter that will clear everyone's confusion... Which is actually a big fault of mine.

I've always known Topaz as golden brown / amber colour, which is what I meant in the previous chapter. I googled and it's a tie between blue and amber, which sucks. So I found on google as 'typical topaz is wine red, yellow, play gray, reddish-orange or brown blue'... Who knew?!

To everyone who reviewed, much love being sent your way, it keeps me wanting to update and work harder on this fic for you!

I don't own Naruto, only the OCs.

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**Akatsuki**

He was sitting with one leg stretched out in front of him, the other bent so his elbow could rest casually on his raised knee.

'H-how can you… you w-were… I…' The words tumbled out of my mouth in a mess of jumbled letters. How was this possible? Why was _he_ here? Maybe he was a prisoner too? They must be holding him here for interrogation and that's why he's here… Yes, that had to be it. The one they called the Red Scorpion…

He swung his legs off the windowsill and stood up, his expression thoughtful as he crossed the distance between us, standing mere inches away from me. My eyes scanned over his body in a quick, medical exam. His face had plenty of colour to it, so I doubted he'd been starved or dehydrated recently for any period of time. Then there was his clothes, not torn or dirtied at all, and he definitely hadn't limped as he'd walked. In fact, he didn't seem injured in any way whatsoever. My eyebrows knitted together as my gaze finally landed back on his honey irises. So if he isn't injured…

'Emiko.' My frown increased at his casual tone, despite its low volume, it sounded calm, as though we were back in my own village of Ookiimura, in the town hall, listening to the mayor ramble on about how proud he was to house the warriors of Kazekuni.

I stared at him a moment longer, scrutinising every tiny movement he made, every blink, every breath, before I finally managed to find my voice. 'S-Sasori… I don't understand why you're here…'

His mouth tilted upwards ever-so-slightly, and I scowled slightly in irritation that he was so amused by our situation, whatever it was.

He opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a sudden loud rapping on the door. Brushing past me casually, Sasori moved to open it, revealing an out-of-breath looking boy, no more than 18 years old.

'Sir, we have a problem in the arena. One of the medics is refusing to cooperate.'

'Fine. Take them to room 101 and wait for further orders.'

'Yes sir.'

He went to close the door but the boy spoke again quickly before it clicked shut. 'Oh and Sir, it's good to have you back!'

It was only then that I could no longer deny the truth, and it hit me like a runaway bullet train. My head dipped and I stared numbly at the floor, only vaguely registering his movement. So that's it then. He was… what? A spy? A traitor? Whatever he was, he'd been one of _them_ all along. My mind reeled, almost unable to believe it. How could this have happened? I thought back to when I'd first encountered Sasuke in the town hall. He'd called him his teammate… But for how long? Surely they wouldn't just take any old warrior in off the street and march them off to war days later without any knowledge of their background? No. This must have been a long term, fully planned operation.

A hand cupped my chin to raise my head, startling me enough to break my trance. I smacked it away furiously, taking several steps back as I glowered at the _stranger_ before me.

'Don't touch me. Don't you _dare_ touch me…'

He had the nerve to roll his eyes, stepping forward and trying to close the gap between us again. 'Emiko, don't overrea–'

I cut him short as my hand flew to his cheek, a sickeningly loud 'slap' echoing through the room as I backed away again, leaving a vicious-looking red handprint across the side of his face. He looked stunned for a moment, before turning his head back to meet my blazing orchid eyes.

'Don't you DARE finish that sentence!' I snarled, still retreating until my back hit the wall, and even then I was nowhere near far enough away from that traitor. 'How _could_ you?'

His eyes flashed with something close to anger, and before I knew it he was right in front of me, a hairs breadth away and staring in a more composed, bored fashion. _More like the Sasori I used to know._

I tried to shrink away but his hands gripped my wrists, holding them tightly on either side of my head and preventing my escape. 'Calm down, I'm not going to hurt you.' He droned, honey eyes softening slightly as I tried to steady my breathing. As much as I hated to admit it, he was right, I needed to calm down in order to figure things out. I was getting nowhere working myself up like that.

'You should be grateful you're still alive. These people aren't usually all that friendly. As it happens, we're lower on medics than we'd have liked, so raiding the medical camp worked in our favour.'

It sickened me the way he referred to them as 'we', as though he was one of them and always had been. But then again, that was true, wasn't it? It always had been…

Biting my tongue to avoid giving him a well-deserved piece of my mind, I settled on glaring in response.

He sighed slowly, reminding me of how close he was standing when his breath blew across my face. I squirmed again slightly, but his grip on my wrists tightened as he moved his mouth to my neck, murmuring against my skin, 'I wouldn't do that if I were you.'

'What, are you trying to threaten me now?' I ground out through gritted teeth.

'Just a warning…' His lips twisted into a smirk as he replied, his voice silky smooth and barely more than a whisper, sending shivers down my spine. Curse my traitorous reactions.

'What do you want? Why am I here?' I spat, fighting the urge to take a feral chunk out of his neck as his mouth now hovered just below my ear.

'Would you rather be out there, healing strangers for an enemy war party?'

I shuddered again and clenched my fists. 'I'd rather be with my sister.'

'Ah, of course, how could I forget?' He chuckled humourlessly and I swear I could hear the eye roll in his tone. 'Well, if you behave then maybe I'll let you see her.'

'Why you– ah!' I yelped as he bit down hard on the side of my neck, though not quite enough to draw blood. I opened my mouth to throw him the best insult I could muster, however, taking advantage of my open mouth, his lips suddenly crashed down onto mine, his tongue twisting forcefully with my own before I could protest.

'S-Sasori…' I tried to sound annoyed, but his name came out as more of a moan, only serving to spur him on. He released my wrists to twist one hand in my hair while the other wrapped around my middle, securing my waist. I probably didn't struggle as much as I should have, but I didn't get the chance to feel guilty because all too soon he stopped, pulling back just enough to lock me in his gaze.

I stared back, his warm honey eyes seeming so much deeper when up so close, making it harder for him to mask his emotions. I tried to see him as heartless, as the murdering traitor that I should have seen him. But I couldn't. Something about the strange way he was looking at me now made every fibre of my being long to trust him.

His features suddenly broke into a small smirk, breaking the illusion and making me scowl. Jerk.

He pushed away, chuckling as I almost stumbled after him and I couldn't help but feel a slight sense of Déjà vu.

'I'll be right back. Don't go anywhere.' _Like I could._ He threw me one last amused glance over his shoulder before disappearing through the door abruptly. I blinked slowly, taking in what just happened.

Mixed emotions was not the phrase. I sunk to the floor on the spot and, leaning my head back to stare up at the bland ceiling, I sighed wearily. I was in way over my head and I did not have the faintest clue of how to get out of this mess. For one thing, I was trapped in an enemy camp, with someone I thought I knew but couldn't have been more wrong, and to top it all off there was a war raging at our heels. But for now it seemed, I had time. Time was important, I would need it order to straighten things out.

I would need it to figure things out in my head. And most of all, I would need it to keep myself and my sister alive in the process.

********** Sasori's POV **********

I marched down the corridor and up a small winding staircase to where one of the defiant medics was being held in room 101. It was a pain and a massive waste of time, but someone had to do it. If the medic refused to work with us, then there was really no point in convincing them.

Room 101 was what we called the one-way room, because most of the time, when prisoners went in, they never came out. At least not alive anyway.

It wasn't surprising we had been so unprepared in the way of healing. The leader of Chitani wasn't a brilliant battle planner, nor was he a great ruler, but he shared a common goal with almost the entirety of his people, and so when he had proposed his plan to attack the surrounding smaller villages in order to achieve greater domination, the warriors had followed him.

To say I was a traitor to Kazekuni wouldn't be a complete lie, but there was some elements to that statement that were false. Firstly, I was not of Kazekuni origin in the first place, so I never held any ties to the land to break. Then again, neither was I a member of Chitani. My official birthplace had long since been destroyed by an organisation known to man as the Akatsuki, a criminal gang of S-rank warriors that utterly levelled my homeland in mere seconds.

I was the only one that I knew of to survive the attack that day. I was fifteen.

Joining the Akatsuki may have been the worst thing I ever decided to do in my life. Then again, one could argue it was the best. I never really cared for my village either way, they were a weak and snivelling body of people, barely worth mentioning even now.

But my time with the S-rank organisation taught me a lot, it made me who I am now. Or who I thought I was. Before I met her…

When our leader, a man with an artificial, self-proclaimed name, Pein, had first come to me with the preposition to accept a contract with the land of Chitani, I had been suspicious.

'Why ask me?' I regarded the orange-haired man before me curiously, though I kept a deathly straight face.

'Because, Sasori, should I chose to accept this alliance, one of the members will be required to embark on a long-term quest that could stretch to several years. I'd like that member to be yourself.' His ringed purple eyes narrowed as he spoke, as though daring me to decline.

'I see. Tell me about this quest.'

'It will be an infiltration mission. You must build trust among their troops, make them believe you are who you say. It will not be easy and I cannot promise it won't be tedious at times, but it is necessary to avoid a war between lands at all cost. The reason I'm requesting you do it, is that you are the least likely candidate to fail in this situation.'

I pursed my lips slightly, just to indicate I was considering this task. I was never much of a people-person, but I supposed, I didn't have to be. I could be withdrawn and still fit into an unknown territory no problem, it would just be slightly more difficult. I doubted I had much say in the matter either way, our leader was not an easily-swayed man.

'Fine. Sign the contract. I accept.'

He inclined his head in thanks, and left. And so it began.

Infiltrating their land had been child's play, but the art of getting them to believe I was one of them had been tricky. Lucky for me, one of the members possessed a visual jutsu strong enough to convince people of things that were not true. He was an Uchiha, as it were. It was truly a terrifying jutsu, though I would never had admitted that to him.

I lived in Kazekuni for over 2 years, continuously and systematically reporting back to the Akatsuki headquarters on any relevant news about the village's politics through carrier pigeons. Finally the day came where war was declared, an arrogant, egotistical declaration that they failed to hide from anyone who dared to listen.

I received the orders three days later to continue my guise, only now to provide information on their battle plans and warrior numbers, rather than their thirst for war. I had done just that.

Until the battles began.

It was much simpler than I had thought, killing the entirety of my five-man team. I suppose it was due to the fact that I had the element of surprise on my side. After all, you don't always expect one of the most respected members of your squad to turn the tables and completely obliterate you.

The last warrior proved somewhat harder than the others though, I'll give him that. He managed to leave me with a vicious gaping wound in my gut before I finished him off, growling as I watched the light fade from furious emerald eyes.

Then I had returned to the post I had been ordered to find, and here I'd stayed. As one of the Akatsuki and strongest fighters linked with Chitani, I would not be involved in the actual physical battle until absolutely necessary. A last resort, you might say.

There were three main posts where the warriors would return to for weapon restocking or medical purposes, each with several Akatsuki supervisors located. My post had three members, including myself.

Naturally, when I had showed up, the Chitani warriors, not recognising me, had panicked and tried to attack me and block my path, a futile attempt, I might add. However, luckily for them, Zetsu had arrived on scene, shimmying his way upwards through the dirt before my feet in that creepy plant-like way, and saved them from their embarrassment.

A few weeks passed with not much happening while the war raged on in a fairly even manner. It was all going according to plan until a particularly nasty series of attacks were launched on the main gates of our post, taking out our medical ward with ease and leaving the warriors in a disarray.

'Zetsu. What's the situation?' I queried him calmly, matching his pace as I caught him up in the corridor he was marching down.

'_The entire left wing has gone down_. Approximately sixty to eighty enemy troops, all armed and all alive. _For now_.'

I supressed a shudder at the strange being's split personality and pressed him further. 'What of the defence lines?'

'They're struggling. Deidara is out there now attempting to lift their spirits but he just appears to be making things worse.' I rolled my eyes at this, typical brat being the opposite of helpful, but refrained from commenting when Zetsu's dark half added, '_The useless cowards are on the brink of retreat._'

'I see. I trust you can deal with them while I gather the offensive troops.' I didn't wait around for him to reply though, striding off in a different direction to where the recuperating warriors were waiting anxiously for orders.

I arrived swiftly, barking my commands. 'On your feet. I want two teams to branch out North West until you hit the mountains, head east from there for 6 miles and you will find one of the medical camps from enemy lines. They're mostly unguarded, so they should be easy enough to subdue. Bring them here, unharmed if possible. The rest of you are to defend this fortress.'

The men glanced around, unsure of what I was ordering, and I had to fight the urge to slap my face in frustration.

'Unharmed, Sir?' One man spoke, though I didn't bother to find his face.

'Correct. I have a feeling they're going to have a change of allegiance upon arrival.'

Finally catching my gist, the men departed and I smirked. Why I hadn't thought of this sooner, I'll never know. It would certainly be interesting, seeing her again. I almost itched to see her reaction when we met again. And also, it would be handy to have such a skilled medic on our side. That is, if I could convince her.

That girl was something else. The girl with fierce purple eyes that could burn holes through your head and melt the polar ice caps in the process. She was fierce alright, and skilled. And more stubborn than a sedated mule.

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**A/N: **So what did you think? Love it? Hate it? Give me your thoughts, I always take your advice on board. Reviews are the love :)

Thank you for sticking with it till now!


	16. Some Things Never Change

**A/N: **Another character comes in here that I know you'll all know and hopefully love!

He's one of my favourite characters out of Naruto, and I'm writing his more playful side in this fic so I hope that shows.

Disclaimer!

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**Some Things Never Change**

********** Emiko's POV **********

Sasori returned shortly, just as he'd promised, but he paid me no mind as I glared angrily from the windowsill where I sat. He slumped into a chair that had been tucked neatly under a narrow wooden desk, pulling out a scroll from one of its drawers. I didn't even bother to ask what he was up to, I probably wouldn't care.

In truth, I had calmed down considerably, and was now much more composed than before. Enough to at least think clearly. I turned my head to stare out the window miserably, watching with mild fascination as the raindrops dribbled down the glass. There wasn't much of a view, not that it would have mattered, it's not like I was familiar with this land even if I tried to escape.

A rhythmic knock in a strange, almost comical pattern broke me out of my thoughts, and I peered at the door curiously as though daring it to open.

'Knock, knock!' It did open, almost swung off its hinges to be precise. A man I did not recognise, with long dirty blonde hair and a fringe like a curtain that obscured his left eye, strolled in casually, as though he hadn't a care in the world. 'Hey, Sasori no Danna!'

Sasori glanced up from the scroll he was scribbling on to raise an unimpressed eyebrow. 'Why do you even bother knocking if you're just going to waltz right in?' He muttered, turning back to his desk and trying to ignore him.

The blonde didn't seem too offended as he leaned obnoxiously over the redheads shoulder. 'What's that, yeah?'

'A scroll.'

'What for, hm?'

'Plans.'

'Again? Come on, Danna, live a little. Let's wing it!'

Sasori let out a sharp breath, slamming his pen flat on the wooden surface and turning 180 degrees to face the intruder. 'Deidara. What do you want?'

'Aw don't be like that, man. I'm just bored, yeah.' I frowned lightly at the strange speech impediment. Or maybe it was just a habit?

'Well go bother someone else. I'm busy.' Sasori grumbled, reaching up to rub his temples at the blonde's persistence.

Deidara pouted. 'There isn't anyone else to bother, yeah…'

Was I that invisible? I let out a small chuckle at his obliviousness, unable to hold it in. Their eyes suddenly snapped to mine, and I bit my lip in regret for giving my position away.

I swallowed loudly as I watched the blonde's surprised look change to a sly grin. 'So _this_ is the girl, huh?' He elbowed Sasori lightly in the ribs, missing the slight grimace the ticklish redhead was unable to fully hide.

'Don't you have supervision duties to be getting on with?'

'Now, now, don't be a stick in the mud, Danna, I'm just curious is all, hm…' He smirked, starting to head in my direction.

I subconsciously tucked my knees further into my chest as he approached, my eyes never leaving his one blue eye as I stared suspiciously.

He stopped a few meters away, chuckling at my expression. 'Poor girl is scared to death, what've you been doing to her, Sasori, hm? Here.' He offered me a hand, which I frowned at. What was his game?

Reluctantly, I shifted forward so my legs hung off the edge of the windowsill, glancing at Sasori nervously. He was watching the exchange through guarded eyes, but he didn't offer any encouragement or warning.

My stubborn nature taking over and acting on instinct, I hissed, 'for the record, blondie, I am _not_ scared. I'm pissed off.' I pushed past his open hand and made to stand beside the desk, subconsciously and irrationally feeling safer around the redhead than the blonde.

To my surprise, Deidara laughed out loud. 'Well, my apologies, yeah. I'll be sure to make a note of that in the future.' He finished with a grin, switching his gaze to Sasori. 'So, has she healed you yet, hm?'

'What?' I frowned again, throwing him a weird look.

Sasori sighed and ran a hand through his hair, standing up from his desk and moving to slump into a couch I hadn't noticed. 'You're such a brat.'

'Oh~, so you haven't told her?' Deidara's grin widened, clearly thoroughly enjoying himself in his game of drive-Sasori-insane, which, I had to admit, I too would have been enjoying had I not been so confused.

'What is he talking about?' I demanded, rounding on the puppet-master as he rolled his eyes at my tone.

'Cats out of the bag now, buddy!' The blonde practically skipped over to sit in a couch opposite Sasori's. I took a moment to actually observe my surroundings while Sasori scolded him for using such a ridiculously insulting term such as 'buddy'. The room was quite square, with a desk and long window covering one side of the room where my window seat was, while the other held two small couches, an arm chair and a short table in the centre. Other than that, it was fairly bland. I did, however, notice another door in the corner by the desk. If I had to guess, I'd peg that as the bedroom, since I figured this was one of the base's dormitories.

'Come on, Danna, may as well show her now, yeah.'

'Show me what?' I huffed, gaining their attention again.

Sasori scowled equally at us both, clearly extremely irritated that his comrade and his prisoner were ganging up on him. And yes, I said it. That was technically true, I was being held here against my will by his order, the very definition of a prisoner.

'You two will be the death of me…' He grumbled as he shifted on the couch, lifting the hem of his shirt up to reveal his stomach.

Unable to hide my surprise, my mouth felt open slightly and my eyebrows raised. I certainly hadn't noticed _that_ when I had mentally scanned him for injuries earlier. But what shocked me more was that he had managed to mask the pain so easily. That had to be bothersome in the very least.

'When did you get that...?' I asked, though I wasn't sure I'd like the answer.

Apparently Sasori thought so too, since he ignored the question. 'The wound itself wasn't that deep, but as you can see it seems to have become infected.'

I stared for a moment, my fingers twitching as the medic in me longed to take over, but I was no longer tied to this warrior, and he was no longer who I thought he was. Deciding to be smug about it, I let out a humourless breath. 'I'll bet you cleaned that yourself, didn't you?'

He glowered at me and dropped his shirt back down. 'Yes actually, I did.'

'Some things never change…' I tilted my head and smiled as sweetly and sarcastically as I could. 'Well I do hope you've learned a valuable lesson from that.'

Deidara chuckled at his comrade's sour expression. 'Wow she really has you figured out, doesn't she, hm?' He turned to me then, his laugh subsiding as he asked, 'So, are you gonna heal him?'

'It depends…'

'On what, yeah?'

I pursed my lips, thinking for a moment. 'I have two conditions.'

Sasori raised an eyebrow in half amusement, half surprise. 'Do tell.'

'Firstly, I want you to bring my sister to me and I want her to stay by my side from now on.'

He nodded, clearly having seen that one coming and apparently opting not to comment on the fact that that itself had been two requests.

'And secondly,' I paused to glance around the room. 'I want a room for Mina and myself. Preferably with a lock…'

The pair exchanged a weird look, as though internally debating something extremely unnatural, but after a moment Sasori sighed. 'I'll see what I can do…'

I started to complain about the vague response but Deidara grinned and slapped me hard on the back, shoving me forward a few steps and startling me. 'Wonderful! Now that's all settled you can get to work, yeah.'

I managed a small growl before making my way over to the couch where Sasori was perched. 'Lean back, let me see.'

He hesitated, but after a warning glare that I like to think was mildly threatening, he complied, lifting his shirt again just enough to reveal the wound.

I didn't bother to hide my grimace as I prodded experimentally at the blackened edges and not missing the way Sasori shrunk back slightly from the pain. The actual gash itself had closed up, leaving an ugly jagged line much paler than the rest of his skin, surrounded by angry blue and black blotches that, to the untrained eye, may have been mistaken for bruises. It looked to be a few weeks old, and he was lucky that the infection hadn't spread further throughout his body.

'Well?' Deidara questioned when I sat back.

'There's not much to tell. It's clearly become infected from poor medical treatment…' I glared momentarily at the redhead who threw me a withering look. 'But it's easily fixed. Why didn't you get this seen to before? By one of your own medics?'

'Because they're all incompetent.'

'Yeah, and they're also dead.' The blonde finished for him and I frowned at his bluntness, but didn't dare to ask what happened to them.

'Alright then. Sit still.' I muttered, despite the fact that Sasori had barely moved an inch since my examination had begun.

I made the relevant hand signs quickly and felt the familiar flutter of my healing chakra flare around my palms, glowing bright jade as I pressed them against his gut. We sat in silence while I healed, but I was painfully aware of Deidara watching observantly from his seat on the opposite couch.

It only took about ten minutes, but as my palms flickered out and I made to lean back, I faltered. I still had plenty of chakra left should I chose to follow up my work with my soothing bubble technique, but did I want to grant him that privilege? In theory, it could be classed as further _relevant_ healing since my jutsu moistened the affected area, which was beneficial for healed infections. But he certainly didn't deserve it…

So why was I so tempted?

He seemed to sense my deliberation and made the decision promptly for me, tugging his shirt back down and standing up.

'Right. I guess I'll go get your sister then.' He mumbled, heading for the door. 'Come on, brat. You have work to do.'

'See you round, erm…'

'…Emiko.'

'See you round, Emiko, hm!' The blonde threw me a friendly grin as he left and I waved a hand half-heartedly in return.

He was a strange character alright. Too laid-back and teasing to be considered a true warrior, in my opinion. Then again, there was nothing wrong with having a personality and a sense of humour. In all honesty, it was a breath of fresh air to meet someone like him in a place like this. The enemy camp.

I groaned and flopped back into the couch cushions, wishing with all my might that they would just open up and swallow me, never to be seen again. _What have I gotten myself into?_

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**A/N: **If anyone wants any other Akatsuki members (Or characters in general) let me know in a review or a message, and I'll try to fit them in.

As far as I've planned for now, Sasori, Deidara and Zetsu are the only members that will feature in the fic, because they're all at this base. But like I said, any requests and I'll try to fit them in :)

See you next week!

Ps: THANK YOU SO MUCH to everyone who reviews. You guys all rock and I love you to the moon and back :D


	17. What The Future Holds

**A/N: **I'm really sorry for the delay in uploading, a load of crazy shit has gone down and I've not had any time, inspiriation or willpower to write...

On a brighter note, I'm actually enjoying writing the characters! I, personally, really like fanfics with OCs in them, I think they're interesting and original and fun to write :D

What're your thoughts on OCs? Love them? Hate them? Don't care either way?

I do not own Naruto, only the OCs.

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**What the Future Holds**

'What do you mean, 'there are no rooms'?' I demanded, hands fisting into tight, angry balls at my sides as I glared. When Sasori had returned with Mina, he had then had the nerve to break the news to me that there were no actual bedrooms left in the facility to honour my second condition.

Sasori blinked at me, unfazed by my anger and not bothering to repeat himself.

'I can't believe I believed you…' I scowled at the floor, feeling pretty stupid and downright used.

'Technically, I never actually agreed in the first place…'

'You implied it!'

'Koko?' I snapped my blazing eyes to my sister, who had been cowering behind me throughout the whole argument. 'Erm, there's not really much we can do if there are no rooms…'

'That's not the point!' My voice came out harsher than I intended and instantly felt guilty for it. 'Sorry…'

'At least one of you has some common sense.' Sasori commented, but spoke again gesturing to the door in the corner behind him before I could insult him further. 'There's a double bed back there though. You two can have it.'

I faltered, wondering absently where he was going to sleep if we were in there, but then again, he could sleep in the bathtub for all I cared right now. Maybe he'd do us all a favour and drown himself in the process.

'Guess that'll have to do…' I grumbled, not missing his smirk as I was forced to accept the offer.

I pulled Mina's hand in mine and stalked past him, throwing the door open and slamming it loudly behind me. I nodded once in satisfaction at the noise, before turning to check the room.

It was bigger than I expected, with a double bed covered by perfectly folded beige sheets and a small beside table to the side. The walls were a boring magnolia, with one small window at the back of the room to the right of the bedside table. I glanced out of it, but as I predicted, its view gave nothing away about our location.

Turning back to Mina, she was twisting her hands together nervously. I frowned. 'What's wrong, Mimi?'

Her deep purple eyes met mine, clouded with worry as she responded. 'You shouldn't shout so much… We might get into trouble.'

She was scared, I knew that. I had forgotten that she wasn't quite as used to being around such an obnoxious, impatient, annoyingly arrogant and stubborn jerk like I was. Then again, she had reason to worry now. He was our enemy. She seemed to have picked up on that fact quickly, and reacted far more subtly that I had. I was immensely proud of her bravery, but I was being selfish and had forgotten that she needed reassurance.

'Sorry, Mina. Don't be scared, I swear I won't let anything happen to you, ever.' I promised determinedly.

She perched uncomfortably on the edge of the bed as I settled myself beside her, pulling my legs up and crossing them on the duvet.

'…So he was one of them all along?' She asked in a quiet voice, so low that I barely heard her.

'Yes.' I clenched my jaw to keep from swearing momentarily before continuing. I had to keep my cool if I wanted to make her feel safe. 'But I don't think he'll hurt us.'

'How can you be sure?'

'I can't. But we're medics. They need us alive in order to stand a chance of winning this war.'

'And after the war? What happens to us?'

I glanced at her face, but she hid her eyes beneath her fringe, preventing me from reading her expression.

'We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. But I promise you, I will not let them touch you.'

She nodded slowly, seeming to understand that I really didn't have an answer to that. It hurt that I couldn't just kiss it all better and make her monsters disappear, like I had when she was younger. But some things didn't just go away, no matter how hard you wished.

********** Sasori's POV, a few hours later **********

She was angry with me. That much was obvious, though I had pretty much expected that and would have been concerned if she wasn't.

It was still a pain though, and she was fiercely stubborn. It would be difficult to convince her to work willingly with me, without having to go through a similar sort of argument as before. Then again, she'd already healed my stomach now, so really I should have been sending her back into the arena with the other medics. I didn't need her anymore.

But for some reason, the idea made me scowl. Honestly, I'd grown rather fond of having my own personal medic, even if she did like to nag like a paranoid mother hen. I despised the thought of giving something up that once belonged to me. It was selfish, but I didn't care.

_Emiko._ I chuckled lightly at the unwavering scowl she'd had me pinned with earlier. What fun it was to break that expression. It really was too easy to make her blush and bend to my will, too easy to draw a reaction out of her.

What wasn't easy though, was understanding what ran through that confusing female brain of hers. Women have always been predictable, far too easy to read and always so pointless in their actions. But she was different somehow, and it annoyed me beyond belief why I didn't have her as figured out as I'd like. Perhaps that's why I kept her around, I've always liked a challenge, and Emiko was definitely a difficult one to break. But in the end, I'll win this game of love and war. I always do.

Love. Such a human word, such a futile emotion. I had long since shut off any and all forms of such a pathetic feeling, even before my homeland was obliterated. I had no time or patience for love, it made you needy and selfless, it made you do pointless things for no reason that could benefit yourself. What's the point of making someone else smile when you yourself are miserable?

Pathetic. I would never stoop so low.

I glanced at the clock, yawning subconsciously when I realised how late it was. My gaze travelled to the bedroom door that Emiko had given an unhealthy slam in her rage a few hours ago. It had been quiet in there for quite a while, and I wondered absently if they had gone to sleep.

My head dropped to stare blankly at the scroll I was currently working on, writing and sketching out plans for the next calculated attack. I reread my work so far and frowned, crumpling it up in frustration and pushing it over the edge of the desk into the bin beside it. I wasn't getting anywhere with planning tonight.

Sighing in resignation, I stood up and stretched my arms out in front of me, my eyes finding their way to the closed bedroom door again. My feet carried me silently to stand before it, hand hovering hesitantly over the door knob.

I pride myself in my ability to make fast decisions. For as long as I can remember I've always been a decisive person, so why was I hesitating now? The thought made me growl slightly, irritation spiking at my deliberation. I opened the door swiftly, not wanting to wait any longer.

My hazel eyes landed immediately on the bed. They were both there, unmoving. Mina was curled up in a ball on her side, breathing quietly and fast asleep. Emiko was beside her, burying her face into the back of her head with one arm draped over her sister's small waist. But she wasn't asleep, I could tell.

I watched them for a moment silently, wondering why she was just lying there when I hadn't exactly be stealthy upon entering. The room was dark, with only the vague light of the moon seeping in through the window.

Finally, she stirred, tilting her head up slightly to peer at me with one open eye. I stared back, strangely entranced. She wasn't glaring, and that was one thing I supposed. But something about the way she _was_ looking unnerved me, her expression was dull and lifeless, as though she'd just given up completely. My eyebrows knitted together at the sight.

'What do you want, Sasori?' She murmured softly, her voice barely audible.

I didn't reply, instead simply continued to frown at her vacant expression.

She shifted slowly, careful not to wake the younger girl beneath her as she sat up. 'Is your stomach bothering you?' She asked, looking just past my ear rather than catching my gaze. It was only then that I noticed her cheeks glistening from dried tears as the soft moonlight illuminated her face, and I suddenly felt an overpowering urge to brush them away.

'No.'

'…Then what do you want?'

Mina suddenly let out a small breath and shuffled onto her back and Emiko froze, waiting for her to settle again before gently unwrapping herself from the sleeping girl. She padded silently across the room, gesturing for me to follow her as she passed.

She waited for me to exit before shutting the door as gently as she could, then turn excruciatingly slowly to face me. She hid her eyes behind her hair, which hung free of its usual braid and twin buns as she fiddled with her hands, wringing them together.

'What do you want?' She whispered, more forcefully this time.

What did I want? I wasn't entirely sure myself. Why did I even bother to check on them? She was watching me expectantly from beneath her soft brown bangs, piercing orchid eyes glinting in the lamplight.

I lifted one hand to brush her fringe to the side, but froze when she flinched violently as my hand neared her face.

'What would be the point in hurting you now?' I murmured, my hand still lingering in the air as I kept my voice at the same volume as hers, not wanting to disturb the quiet atmosphere.

'There isn't one. But there's also no point in keeping us here either.'

My eyebrows twitched. She had a point I suppose, but I wasn't going to let her know that. 'Would you rather me send you back out there to be kicked around by a bunch of enemy warriors and be forced to heal them without question?'

She glowered at me, and for a moment I thought she was going to agree just to spite me, but her eyes suddenly flickered over her shoulder, remembering she wasn't the only one in this. 'No. I just don't understand.' Then in a small, mousy voice, she whispered. 'How could you be one of _them_?'

'I work for whoever hires us.' I don't know what possessed me to answer so honestly, but I'll never forget the incredulous look of betrayal and judgement Emiko shot me with as soon as the words left my mouth.

I blinked slowly in response to her stare as what I'd just admitted dawned on me.

After almost a lifetime, she sucked in a sharp breath and held it mercilessly as she finally found a response. 'Who's 'us'?'

I chewed on the inside of my cheek furiously as I internally scolded myself for such a careless slipup. She would, undoubtedly, have heard of the infamous organisation of blood-thirsty, ruthless murderers known as the Akatsuki, so how do I respond to that?

'I'm part of a group that works for the highest bidder. Like mercenaries.' I settled with a vague response, hoping she would drop it and move on to another question. Unfortunately, she was intrigued.

'How many are there? Where are the others?'

I knew if I refused to answer she would get suspicious and, if I knew Emiko, she wouldn't stop until she found out everything there was to know through any means possible. 'There's ten including myself… Were split between bases, you've already met one of them…' I mumbled the last part, unsure of whether or not it was a good idea to admit that.

'Deidara?' She guessed, her expression unreadable.

I nodded once and she continued. 'So, I guess it's nothing personal whose side you're on…' She laughed bitterly, though she far from amused. She lifted her head to glance at the ceiling in a half-hearted eye roll, pushing past me gently as she headed one of the couches, where she curled her legs beneath her as she stared unseeingly at the table.

I debated whether or not to follow her, my irritation growing at my level of uncertainty that only seemed to increase. My feet moved of their own accord, stopping a little way away from her seat.

'What happens after the w-war then?' Her voice broke midsentence, and I visibly winced at the question.

What _would_ happen then? I was always one for forward thinking, planning ahead rather than some sort of reckless, spur-of-the-moment fool like Deidara was. But this question had me stumped, I had not thought this far ahead and for the first time in my life, I found myself at a dead end. This was not me, and I did not like it.

Her tired eyes landed on mine, a moment of brief, heart-wrenching emotion leaking out of them before she dropped her gaze to the table again. I scowled at the way every instinct inside of me screamed to move closer, to tell her it'd be alright and to promise I'd never let anything hurt her or her sister. But I stubbornly refused to give in to such futile actions. There was no point in lying, and there was no point in empty promises when I didn't even know what I, myself, was doing anymore.

'I don't know…' I answered, honestly. There was nothing else I could tell her at this moment, I really had no idea what the higher-ups intended to do with the enemy medics once they were done with them, supposing the war ended in their favour.

'Okay.' She murmured, eyes sliding shut in resignation. I stayed standing there for too long after that. I stayed as she slowly fell into an uncomfortable-looking broken slumber, and the whole time I just stood there, watching.

A small voice inside me tried to protest that it was more like guarding, but I squashed the voice as soon as it rose.

I was at a loss for what to do, and I did not like that.

Not. One. Bit.

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**A/N: **Some more canon characters cropping up in the next few chapters, a visit from the Akatsuki leader and some troops of Chitani are revealed!

I look forward to posting :) Thank you for all the reviews up till now, they've helped me write it this far and I really appreciate the feedback!


	18. Which Uchiha?

**A/N: **So turns out, I'm including other Akatsuki members after all. I can't help it, I just love them! They should totally have their own spin-off canon series, it'd be awesome!

Still not claiming any rights! Except to the OCs…

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**Which Uchiha?**

********** Emiko's POV **********

'…Koko?'

Mina's small voice made me squint in the harsh light that was invading my sleep, and I rubbed my eyes, groaning slightly as I edged myself into a seated position. My back ached, and when I finally blinked myself conscious, I understood why. I guess I must have drifted off last night on the couch. Damn lumpy cushions.

'Morning, Mina, how are you feeling today?' I offered her my best smile, but her expression was clouded with concern. My smile faltered as I questioned her. 'Mimi? Is everything alright?'

'Erm, you're erm… Well…' Her purple eyes flickered to something just behind me, and I followed her gaze nervously, the sinking feeling that I was not going to like what I saw increasing by the millisecond.

An ungracious 'GAH' escaped my lips as I leapt up and away from the offending sight. So, that's why my back hurt…

Of course, Mina just _had_ to walk in on me sleeping practically _snuggled_ up with the red-haired traitor holding us captive. He was still asleep, thankfully, and I mouthed silently for a moment until I swallowed hard, my expression quickly changing to a glare.

My eyes snapped back to Mina, who was watching me curiously, patiently waiting for an explanation.

'I-I fell asleep and… I mean I d-don't know how… Urgh. Any chance you could forget about this?'

She threw me a confused look as I squeezed my eyes shut and rubbed my temples before I risked another glance at the warrior. His chest rose and fell evenly, mouth slightly ajar as he lay curled on his side in an almost vulnerable position. My expression softened involuntarily.

'He looks so different asleep…' Mina commented quietly. I was about to scoff and inform her that he was still the same arrogant jerk when he winced suddenly and rolled onto his back, one arm clamping over his stomach, though he remained asleep.

I frowned slightly. Was his stomach hurting?

I moved toward him instinctively, ignoring Mina's confused stare as I pried his arm away from the area I'd previously healed. Lifting his shirt ever so slightly, I perched on the edge of the couch beside him as I examined him. What I saw was unexpected, but not uncommon.

'Is that…' Mina started, but I nodded and cut her off.

'That's why he brought me here, I healed him on the condition I could see you, but it was already infected pretty badly by the time I did.'

'Infections are hard to get rid of without proper treatment...' She mumbled, moving to sit on the low table beside me to watch as I ignited my healing chakra. She'd always liked watching me work, for as long as I can remember she'd been fascinated by not only my unique technique, but my normal methods as well.

I numbed the area quickly before prodding around with my chakra to find the source of the infection. It wasn't too difficult to locate and I soothed it quickly. Without thinking, I automatically began my bubble jutsu, but paused when Mina piped up.

'You're using your bubble?' She seemed surprised, which, of course she would be. She was watching her older sister willingly heal an enemy with something never used previously outside the family.

'I didn't really think about it…' I muttered, hands hovering hesitantly over his stomach. 'It would prevent the infection coming back again I guess…'

Mina nodded at my reasoning, but her expression remained unsure. I was about to withdraw when Sasori made to wrap his arm back over the exposed area, and I caught his hand automatically.

It was cold, and it made my heart twinge ever-so-slightly as I settled his arm back at his side. Decision made, I signed the relevant seals and pressed my palm to his gut, painfully aware of Mina's eyes on mine. I was a medic, it was only natural for me to want to do the job fully… Right?

********** Mina's POV **********

I tilted my head slightly, trying to see Emiko's expression better, but she had her head dipped low enough to expertly hide her eyes. I frowned. This was unlike the Emiko I knew, she was stubborn and fiercely loyal to all that's good and moral. And yet here she was, deliberating and unconsciously fussing over someone who had not only betrayed her trust, but was fighting for the side of evil and holding her and myself captive in the process.

Then again, Emiko had never been physically able to be downright cruel. Not even to those she hated, not even to Sasuke. So I guess it was only natural for her to try to help someone in pain.

My eyes flickered up to his face again, and I supressed a gasp as I stared into recently opened honey irises. They were tired and half-lidded as he lazily returned my gaze for a few moments, before turning back to where my sister was obliviously working on her patient. I bit my lip as I debated commenting, but I was curious to see how she'd react.

I watched his expression closely as Emiko worked. He didn't seem at all bothered by my presence or observations, occasionally glancing back to me in an almost familiar fashion. His nose occasionally scrunched slightly as though fighting an itch, but other than that his features remained soft and relaxed.

I flinched lightly in surprise when Emiko spoke up. 'You're an idiot…'

It took a moment to realise she wasn't talking to me.

Sasori's lips quirked upwards in a small smirk but he didn't reply. I guess she just wanted to make sure he knew that she knew he was awake, and I couldn't shake the suspicion that they'd been in a similar situation before.

We remained in silence until she finished her healing, when she finally pulled back and stretched her arms out in front of her as she supressed a yawn. 'You're done.'

He propped himself up on his elbows as he glanced down at his freshly healed stomach, before pushing up to sit with his face inches from Emiko's, who turned bright red and scooted backwards quickly. _Interesting…_

The redhead's eyes suddenly turned to mine, seemingly unfazed by the situation. 'Are you hungry?'

I blinked at the strange tangent, but nodded quickly before I was quiet for too long. He passed between us and headed for the door in response, to where I assumed he was going to get food. When the door clicked shut, my eyes drifted to Emiko's, unable to hide a slight smirk tugging at my mouth.

'What?' She snapped, but I didn't flinch at her defensive tone.

'Nothing.' I smiled innocently, changing the subject before she could break me. 'So what do we do now?'

'Huh? About what?'

'What do we do for the rest of the day here…' I trailed off as her expression changed to one of understanding.

'Oh. I don't know, yesterday I spent most of my time sulking on the windowsill…' _Yep, that sounded like my sister. _She shuffled awkwardly further into the couch as she leaned her head back, her eyes sliding shut as she released a long, drawn out sigh. I moved to sit beside her and snuggled my head onto her shoulder, suddenly feeling a lot calmer about our situation.

********** Emiko's POV **********

I was just starting to relax when the door swung open with a loud thud as it hit the wall, and the blonde male from yesterday sauntered in.

'Deidara?' I questioned him, and he turned at the sound of his name.

'Oh hey, Emiko!' His eyes travelled to my sister, who was scrunching further into the couch nervously at the intruder. 'And smaller Emiko… This must be your sister, yeah.'

I nodded and threw Mina a reassuring smile. 'It's alright, this is Deidara. He's erm…' I glanced at the ceiling momentarily as I searched for the right word. 'An acquaintance of Sasori's.'

'Ouch, harsh words, yeah.' The blonde screwed up his face in obvious distaste, but his eyes were laughing along. 'Speaking of Sasori, where is he?'

'He went to get breakfast a few minutes ago…' I trailed off when the devil himself appeared behind Deidara in the doorway.

'Danna!'

'Brat.'

Deidara pouted as the redhead shot him down, but he wasn't undeterred for long. 'I just got news from Leader-sama, yeah. He and two of the others will be here any minute and they'll want a status report as soon as possible.'

Sasori groaned and ran a hand through his hair in exasperation. 'Has no one ever heard of forward planning in this organisation…?'

'Oh and he's sending two more squads to this base after the last attack, yeah.'

The puppet-master threw a glare at Deidara, who was grinning like a fool. 'Anything else I should know about that you want to casually drop onto me at the last minute?'

The blonde positioned one finger against his chin and tapped it lightly, pretending to think. 'Actually, now that you mention it, Zetsu is transferring to the Western base.'

Sasori blinked. 'Why?'

'I dunno why, yeah. But Pein says we're swapping him for that damn Uchiha.'

I had been listening intently to their conversation, but I sucked in a sharp, audible breath at that last part. _Uchiha_?! What did they mean? Surely not _Sasuke Uchiha_? Was he one of them too? My mind reeled with questions to the point where I had to force myself to tensely sit straight and clench my jaw to stop myself for blurting them all out at once. My gasp did not go unnoticed by Sasori, who threw me an unreadable glance.

'Anyway, I gotta go check on the defence lines, yeah, catch you later!' The blonde grinned in our direction before disappearing back the way he'd come.

Almost as soon as the door had closed behind him I rounded on Sasori, firing questions before he had a chance to open his mouth. 'Uchiha? What Uchiha? And who is this Pein guy? Why is he coming here? What last attack?'

'Emiko!' Sasori barked, closing the distance between us and slapping a hand over my mouth, silencing me long enough to begin to reply. 'Not the Uchiha you're thinking of.'

I visibly relaxed. Well that's one thing at least.

'Pein is the leader of Aka–' He stopped mid-sentence, shaking his head lightly as though scolding himself before restarting his response. 'Pein is the leader of the organisation I work for. He does routine checks on each base every now and then, it's nothing new. Though it would be nice to get a little warning once in a while…' He grumbled, removing his hand from my mouth and heading for his desk.

'Who is this Uchiha then? Why is he coming here?' I called after him. I moved to follow his retreat, but Mina's small hand in mine pulled me back. I glanced down at her worried expression as she nervously chewed her lower lip, sighing when I realised I was getting carried away again.

'You heard the brat, we don't know the details yet.' He bent over the desk with his palms flat on the surface as his eyes scanned an open scroll laid out before him. Then, more to himself, he muttered, 'this will have to do for now…'

Turning back to us, he motioned with a quick jerk of his head to follow him into the bedroom.

I hesitated, but tugged gently on Mina's hand when he made no move to leave until he was sure we would follow. 'Come on, Mimi.'

He closed the door softly when we entered, and I subconsciously pushed Mina slightly behind me as I regarded him cautiously. His hazel eyes flickered to meet mine, a rare and brief flash of emotion crossing them, possibly something close to concern.

'You need to listen to me. Pein is not someone you can talk back to, he commands the utmost respect and obedience from everyone he deems beneath him, a category in which you two will _certainly_ fall.' His eyes narrowed on mine, daring me to object, but for once, I held my tongue. Something about his sudden serious demeanour had my full attention.

'I mean it, Emiko. He is nothing like the people you are used to. Do not test him. You'll be wise to remain in here for the duration of his visit.'

He threw me one final glare, before turning on his heel and leaving. I supressed a shudder at the unspoken threat, my orchid irises softening when they landed on Mina's enlarged, frightened ones.

'Don't worry, I'll keep my mouth shut.' I promised, chuckling when she raised a disbelieving eyebrow. 'Besides, if we stay in here like Sasori said, he probably won't even know we exist.'

'I hope you're right…' She mumbled

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**A/N: **I just had to add Mina's perspective on their 'relationship', because I wanted to show how people see it from the outside, since Sasori and Emiko are both so conflicted and confused themselves, Mina sees it much more clearly.

Review and I shall continue, as always! :)


	19. Am I Missing Something?

**A/N: **Just a quick note about the era this is set in, although it is mostly medieval in its traditions and warfare, there are such things as cameras and movies, but they're the old style camera's that take about 20 minutes to process a photo and the movies are like, the original movie reel-to-reel method in black and white and sort of flickering.

If that makes any sense. It's in context anyway, is what I'm trying to say :P

Ps: Thank you to my amazing reviewers, I wouldn't have the inspiration to carry on if it wasn't for you. I just can't thank you enough! And I'm so sorry this chapter is late, I've had a lot of uni projects I needed to catch up on!

Disclaimer as always.

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**Am I Missing Something?**

Unfortunately, I was not right. Not in the slightest. Apparently, freaky two-toned plant-guy was somewhat of a gossip amongst this criminal organisation, and the first thing their leader had demanded upon arrival was to see, and I quote, 'Sasori's new toys, immediately'.

I'd scowled almost enough to burn a hole through the door I was listening through, and just barely managed to stop myself from bursting into the other room to put this guy in his place. But I didn't. For Mina's sake, and maybe because just a tiny part of me was feeling kind of on edge after what Sasori had said about their leader.

Mina was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the bed behind me, watching nervously as I threw her an occasional irritated glance in response to what was being said in the adjoining room.

A few moments later, the talking stopped and muffled footsteps began to approach the other side of the door. I leapt back hurriedly, scrambling onto the bed to sit with my legs over the edge, my body angled towards Mina but not enough so that the door was out of my sight.

There was a curt tap on the wood, making me jump slightly. 'Y-yes?' I hadn't expected them to knock…

The handle twisted in response, swinging open agonisingly slowly to reveal a startlingly orange haired man, followed closely by two others I didn't recognise and then at the back, Sasori.

I glanced at the latter anxiously as they piled in, and although he kept his expression neutral, his eyes narrowed ever-so-slightly in a silent warning to behave. They moved to stand in a semi-circle around the bed where I sat as my gaze flickered between them suspiciously, sizing them up.

I bit my tongue as they stood in silence, desperately fighting the urge to tell them to take a photo, they last longer.

After a few awkward moments, one of the strangers huffed and leaned against the bedside table. 'Bloody hell, Pein. I'm getting old here, you gonna speak or what?'

'Watch your tongue, Hidan.' The orange-topped leader threw a glare at him in response.

'Yeah, yeah…' Hidan waved a hand in dismissal before running it through his slicked back silver hair.

Their leader's eyes landed back on mine, and I couldn't stop the slight tilt of my head as I examined his unusual, lilac ringed eyes. 'So, you are Emiko?' His voice was deep but smooth, the kind of voice you'd peg as the immediate bad guy in some cliché teenage horror movie.

I nodded slowly, resisting a glare as his eyes slid to my sister, who I could practically hear trembling beside me. 'And this must be Mina, correct?'

I nodded again, my mouth pressing into a tight, thin line. I momentarily debated asking why he cared, when the third male I didn't know spoke up.

'What you gonna do about them, Leader-sama?' Gravel. His voice was like gravel, hoarse and yet somehow strangely clear. Oh and he was impossibly tall and his skin was blue… How did I _not_ notice this guy before?

Their leader's eyes met mine again and his expression twisted thoughtfully. 'Bring her.'

'Wha–' I barely had time to be surprised as the blue abomination hoisted me up over his shoulders, where I hung limply for a moment.

He started to move towards the door where the guy they called Pein was heading, when the movement snapped me out of my daze and I struggled against his hold, growling 'I can walk for myself, you know!'

Sasori's face appeared in front of mine in a heartbeat, frowning lightly as if to silence me as he trailed after my captor.

'E-Emiko!' Mina's tiny voice rang out from the bed, where Hidan was still standing as though debating on what to do with her. I started to thrash harder and was just about to warn him away, when carrot-top beat me to it.

'Leave the younger one, Hidan. She's clearly terrified, she's of no use to me.'

The silver-haired male rolled his eyes and muttered something incoherent in irritation, though made no further move to disobey. I allowed myself to relax slightly, at least they were leaving Mina alone. For now.

I was definitely _not_ happy about my method of transport, though I soon realised the blue male was far too strong for me to escape from, and settled for digging my elbows into his back as I propped my head up, smirking when I felt him roll his shoulder uncomfortably.

It did not help that while I was being 'escorted' away, the red-heads face remained inches from mine the whole time, rolling his eyes when I fixed him with an unimpressed glare.

To say I was relieved when I was dumped unceremoniously on a hard stone floor minutes later would be an understatement, but unfortunately, my relief was extremely short lived.

'Emiko? I-is that y-you?'

I spun on my heel at the sound of my name, recognition dawning. _I know that voice!_ My eyes snapped to the corner of my new surroundings, which I begrudgingly identified as a prison cell, and not a particularly clean one either.

My eyes widened incredulously, several different expressions twisting in my stomach all at once. Relief, confusion, concern, fear and then anger. Oh, the anger…

'Kichiro…' I breathed, inching forward only to have a firm hand planted on my shoulder and halting my movements. I fired a furious glower at whoever had dared to touch me, slapping the hand away and demanding, 'what the hell is going on?'

Hidan, the one who had stopped me, only grinned, his eyes lighting with amusement as he nodded towards their leader, who gave me one simple order.

'Heal him.'

I blinked at him, anger dissipating into suspicion. _Why was Kichiro here? And since when? Wait, if he said heal him, then that must mean…_

My eyes darted back to the boy in the corner, getting a closer look at him. As I had feared, he was badly injured and his breathing was dangerously quiet and shallow.

This place was bad for my brain… I seemed to be missing a lot of vital details these days. I scowled as I knelt in front of him slowly, my eyes scanning his body more thoroughly. He looked to have several broken ribs from the way he was holding his chest and the sound of his breathing. His right arm was bent at an odd angle and there was a thin trickle of blood leading down the side of his face stemming from his hairline. Finally, my eyes locked with his.

They were slightly glazed and clearly exhausted, but he was still fully alert.

'What happened to you?' My voice came out in barely a broken whisper, but he heard me. His lips parted as he tried to reply, but a harsh voice from behind cut him off.

'No talking. Just heal.'

I whirled on Pein, suddenly not caring about Sasori's warning.

'_Excuse me_?' I hissed, preparing a sufficiently hateful speech about not giving a damn about who he thought he was or what he could do to me, but before I could utter another word, I was slammed forcefully against the wall beside Kichiro, who yelped in surprise at the sickeningly loud bang as my head collided with stone. I let out a gasp only to find myself struggling for air as a hand clamped firmly around my throat.

'What don't you understand about no talking?' I tried to focus on his serious, lilac eyes as he kept his voice dangerously low, enough to physically petrify a grown man, but my stubborn glare returned almost as soon as the initial shock wore off.

'Look, I don't give a shit who you are–' My voice cut off with an embarrassing wheeze as the pressure on my oesophagus increased.

'Leader-sama…'

'Stand down, Sasori.'

My eyes darted to the side where the red-head was now hovering, a rare display of concern crossing his features. He inclined his head obediently, but he failed to move away. Despite my situation, I had to refrain from smirking at the sight of Sasori in submission, but the orange-haired male's cool, collected voice soon caught my attention again.

'You may not care about what I do to you, but I'm sure you're not so stupid to think I wouldn't be able to hurt you in _other_ ways.' My breath, scarce as it was, hitched in my throat at his unspoken threat. _Mina_…

'Now _heal him_.'

He released my neck and I slumped to my knees, unable to stop the uncomfortable spluttering that followed. I glanced up to find the leader had returned to his place in the doorway, his eyes pinned to mine just daring me to disobey him again. And oh how I wanted to, but I had no doubt that he wouldn't hesitate to drag Mina in here and put her in a similar situation to Kichiro.

My heart clenched as I turned back to face him, vaguely aware that Sasori was still standing beside us, almost protectively. Kichiro was watching me with wide eyes, silently begging me not to do that again. I offered him a small, weak smile of reassurance, before my hands began to glow green and I made a start on his ribcage.

There were three that were broken, and two fractures. Whoever had done this was definitely not going easy on him, which only made me wonder why they wanted me to heal him so badly. I tried to think as I numbed the pain as best I could. What did I know? Well, he was their enemy, in a prison cell all bruised and banged up like this. That much was obvious. They apparently wanted him to stay alive for some reason, and from the looks of it, he hadn't been here long as most of his injuries were fresh and the blood stains had only recently dried.

Then it hit me. He'd been in interrogation, which meant the only reason they could want him alive was so they could torture him all over again. My chakra flickered in horror at the realisation, earning a nervous glance from Kichiro. _No. I couldn't do this… But if I didn't, they'd get Mina. How could I choose one life over the other? They were both innocent… Kichiro wasn't even a warrior!_

The horrific dread that was rising soon changed to unimaginable guilt. It wasn't my choice, but it was happening all over again…

'Something wrong?' I was mildly thankful that it had been the blue male, who I had heard being called Kisame, that had spoken.

I forced my head to shake left and right once each way, a silent gesture of no. My chakra lit up once again as I continued, not missing the wince of pain that escaped the boy's mouth as I hurried to numb the area again.

This was wrong. _So_ wrong. But then again, war wasn't exactly renowned for its provision of good and righteousness, was it? So I healed him. I also made sure to give him an extra boost of my numbing chakra that would hopefully last through the next 'session'.

My hand lingered on his previously broken wrist when I finished, our eyes locking in a silent exchange of concern before I reluctantly stood up.

'Kisame, take her back.' Pein stepped to the side to let us pass, Sasori trailing silently after us until he spoke again. 'Not you, Sasori. I'd like a word.'

I glanced over my shoulder as I was shoved through the door, taking one last look at my captured friend until I finally turned the corner to follow Kisame. At least he wasn't carrying me this time.

After a few minutes of silence, the blue man spoke quietly. 'If you're worried about Sasori, he'll be fine.'

I blinked, wondering if I'd heard him right. 'Why would I care about him?'

Kisame chuckled, surprising me slightly and making me realise I had wondered that out loud. 'Well, never mind then.'

I frowned but didn't push it. He was _blue_, for God's sake. He probably didn't even know what he was talking about. Then again, I suppose I was maybe, a tiny, little bit worried about Sasori. I guess I owed him that much. I mean, he did warn me that Pein was not to be taken lightly.

_Wait, what the hell am I thinking? I don't owe that jerk anything!_

I scoffed and crossed my arms across my chest in disgust, earning a sideways glance from Kisame. We arrived at 'my room' moments later, and my escort left me in the doorway. I couldn't get inside there fast enough, practically sprinting towards the bedroom and all but flinging myself against the door in my haste to check on Mina. She was fine, thankfully. Just a little scared, as to be expected.

'Are you alright?' She questioned me as I crushed her to me in a death hug, burying my face in her soft brown hair.

'I'm okay.' I mumbled. Physically, I was fine. But mentally…

'What happened?' She pushed me back gently and stared up with enlarged round eyes. I smiled and shook my head sadly. I didn't want to tell her about Kichiro, she didn't need to know and it would only serve to scare her further. To my surprise, she smiled back. 'I knew you'd be alright.'

My eyebrows raised slightly in confusion. 'What do you mean?'

'When he went with you, I knew you'd be alright.'

I frowned as I realised who she meant. 'Sasori?'

She nodded, smile never once faltering.

'Why?'

'I don't know, something about the way he is with you, just makes me feel like you're safe.'

Safe? With him? Not in the slightest… Where would she get _that_ idea? I continued to frown as she moved to snuggle down under the duvet, tugging my hand and encouraging me to sit with her. But I was lost in thought now. Was what Kisame said earlier related to what Mina was saying? Why would they think that?

It didn't make sense to me, but there was clearly something I was missing here. And I'd be dammed if I didn't find out soon…

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**A/N: **I'M SO SORRY for making Pein the bad guy, but I just really needed a mean character for this scene and I love them all so much but then Pein, being the leader, seemed the obvious choice :(

Sorry Pein fans! I have more bad news on him too, he'll be leaving the story again shortly, since he's only here for a status report and a check on the base…

I feel bad, but I'm sure we'll all get over it together. :)

See you next week!


	20. Blood, Pain and Misery

**A/N: **So I've been waiting for ages to upload this chapter! I'm feeling mixed emotions over this one, and I don't know how you guys are going to react…

Disclaiming Naruto, as always!

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**Blood, Pain and Misery**

********** Emiko's POV **********

The rest of the day went by uneventful, with Sasori nowhere to be seen and Mina and I never once leaving our room, it felt like a miracle that time was even passing. My sister seemed to sense that I was worrying about something, but I couldn't bring myself to tell her about the enemy's latest prisoner. In fact, I couldn't even bare to think about it for too long before the tears threatened to spill. _Will he survive this? Heck, will _we_ even survive this?!_

It was evening before we got any more 'excitement'. And this time, there was no knock.

'Come on, girl. You have another job to do, and Pein-sama is waiting.'

I scowled at the blue male who had so rudely entered, carrying various assumptions and expectations that I, for one, did _not_ feel like living up to.

'How terrible for him.' I muttered dryly, turning back to the ribbon I had been knotting in Mina's hair. I had just finished perfecting the bow when I was yanked backwards, almost pulling out all my hard work with the force, but managing to let go at the last second, sparing Mina the hair loss.

'Hey! What the hell?! '

'No time like the present…' Kisame chuckled, apparently finding humour in my anger and ignoring me as I quickly slunk into another sour mood.

I didn't even hear Mina call my name behind us this time, too enthralled in my own downward spiral of self-pity and enemy-loathing. He marched with me over his shoulder once again all the way to that damned prison cell.

The cell was as I remembered, except this time, the smell of blood, pain and misery had increased tenfold. I had to hold back a wince as my gaze landed on my tortured friend. A wave of guilt threatened to overpower and blind me, but I sucked in a breath as I crawled up to him, trying my best to keep a brave face.

His head was lolled to the side, one eye swollen shut and blackened, while his other was half lidded and glazed. His arms were tied roughly behind his back with a wire-like rope that had cut into his flesh and left ugly red gashes across his wrists. Other than that and his once again ragged breathing, he was alive, and that was the main thing.

After a moment of deliberation, I decided that he was conscious, though just barely, and my palms flickered to life without further ado. Green chakra flooded his bloodstream, forcing the numbness to flow towards his wounds before I got to work on releasing his hands. Once freed, I moved each one tenderly to rest by his sides and checked his pulse. It was weak, but at least it was still there.

'E-Emiko…' He rasped, but I shushed him instantly.

'No, don't speak, save your energy.' His gaze met mine briefly, but he was struggling to keep even his good eye open, so reluctantly settled back against the wall as I worked.

'I'm so sorry, Kichiro…' I whispered feebly, my voice breaking and barely being able to maintain eye contact with the injured boy as I allowed a single tear to crawl down my cheek. Despite all the pain and agony he was feeling, his lips still managed to stretch into a tiny, reassuring smile that almost broke my heart.

My palms moved to hover over his injured eye, mumbling words of apology whenever the pain broke through the numbing chakra making him wince and hiss. I finished on his eye sooner than I should have, but I was eager to search his ribcage again for any more fractures. Perhaps eager was the wrong word, but it was definitely a more pressing issue that I needed to check. My chakra probed through his system, but what I found was much worse than a few broken ribs.

I cursed out loud as I came across the problem. He was bleeding internally.

'What's is it?' The voice made me jump, cool and cruel but instantly recognisable. I hadn't even noticed the organisation leader standing at the back of the room until now.

I replied, albeit reluctantly. 'He's got an intra-abdominal bleed, it's hard to heal in these conditions without the proper equipment to–'

My nervous ramblings were cut off abruptly by Kichiro, as if on cue to prove my point, started to splutter wildly, lurching forward as he coughed up thick, scarlet blood.

I rubbed his back pathetically as I worried my lip, desperately wracking my brains for the quickest way to heal him, but Pein's next words interrupted my thoughts.

'Fine. He won't talk, so we have no further use for him.' My head shot up just in time to see the orange haired male nod to Kisame, who wasted no time in raising a giant bandaged weapon and preparing to bring it down upon their prisoner.

'No~!' I screamed, darting forward to protect Kichiro, but someone caught my wrist and pulled me backwards harshly at the last second.

It was over before I even knew what had happened. My hands reached out to nothing, shaking violently as I stared in disbelief at the spot where my friend had once sat.

'N-no…' My voice shook violently, and a heartbroken sob escaped from my lips before I could stop it, gasping for breath uncontrollably. My legs gave way, though before I could hit the ground, the same hands that had stopped me before caught my waist and held me up. But I was seeing red.

Adrenaline suddenly racing through my body and all thoughts of my sister obliterated, I spun around and with all the strength I could muster, shoved him back and away from me.

I was hardly surprised when my furious purple irises locked with honey, recognition barely registering as I turned again, eyes landing this time on the one who gave the order.

'You _bastard_!' I screeched, lunging for him and hissing with rage as Sasori caught me before I could reach my target, _again_. 'Get off me! Let me go, I'm gonna tear you apart you heartless, murdering bastard!'

I kicked out again when a new figure entirely appeared inches from my face. His eyes swirling a strange, hypnotising crimson, my screaming gradually subsided and my breathing calmed. It was odd, almost like having the life drained out of you and feeling nothing but a dull ache in the back of your head. Like someone was sucking your soul out your very being, but slowly and gently. My limbs became weak until I had no choice but to lean on the redhead behind me, all feeling of control over my own body slipping away, until eventually, even my vision blurred and dissipated, leaving me in darkness.

********** Sasori's POV **********

When she woke up, I was expecting her to be upset, yes, but I figured she'd be wanting me to leave her alone to her grief or to be sent back to her sister. But then, I should be used to being wrong when it comes to Emiko by now.

We were in one of the empty medic rooms, where I had brought her to recover quietly by herself before going back to Mina when she was ready. But the second her eyes had opened and the memories had come flooding back to her, she had rounded on me so fast I hadn't even been able to stop the harsh slap she had delivered to my cheek in a heartbeat.

And then her ranting had started. I hadn't actually been paying attention to what she was saying until a few minutes ago, since I had been preoccupied by shock and irritation at the stinging sensation that was proving difficult to ignore.

She suddenly paused to throw her hands up in the air in exasperation, spinning around so her back was to me in a failing attempt to hide her emotions. Her shoulders quivered as she tried to contain her sobs and her lungs heaved with her ragged breathing.

I was pretty shocked that she was angry at me. All I had done is stopped her from making the situation any worse! Would she rather me have let her die as well? What good would that do anyone?

She made no further move to speak, so I broke the silence that was beginning to linger. 'Emiko. His life wasn't important.'

'Who the hell are you to decide who's life is or isn't important?!' I almost winced as the pitch of her voice threatened to breach normal human hearing. 'Everyone in life is equal! _Everyone_!'

'Okay, well his life wasn't important _to me_.' Why didn't she just understand what I meant?

'That's completely irrelevant! You had _no right_ to do choose one life over another!'

'Isn't that exactly what you did with Shige once upon a time…?' At the look she was giving me now, I realised I had just stepped on a landmine, quickly backpedalling and throwing out something else. 'So you'd rather me have let you die back there?'

'I'd rather you had just stayed out of it!'

Was I going to have to spell it out for her?

'So you'd both be dead.' I deadpanned, trying a different approach to make her see sense. 'That's quite selfish of you, you know. To leave Mina behind all alone, in an enemy camp.'

She faltered in her next comeback, but when it came it was just as ferocious, if not more so than her previous ones. 'Don't you _dare_ bring Mina into this! This is about you letting Kichiro _die_ when you could have _done something about it_!' She screeched the last few words so loudly that my ears were left ringing in their wake.

'I didn't care about him though, I care about–' My mouth snapped shut abruptly. I was letting my emotions run wild and I did not like where that sentence was going… This damn woman was always bringing the worst out in me. As if to prove that fact, she spun around fully and met my gaze with burning orchid eyes.

'What? What, _exactly_, do you care about?!'

I could feel my temper flare as my hands fisted by my sides. 'Drop it, Emiko.'

'No, I won't! Come on! What, if anything other than _yourself_, do you actually care about?' She spat, hatred blazing in those infuriatingly narrowed irises.

'I said that's enough. Now leave it alone.' I warned through gritted teeth. I rarely lost my temper, but she was really pushing her luck.

I held back a growl as she stubbornly continued to rant, beginning to pace back and forth as she yelled. 'You're always ordering me around, ordering _everyone_ around and they all act as though they're afraid of you, but you don't scare _me_. You never will! I will _never_ cower before such an _arrogant, selfish ignorant jer_–'

I finally snapped, shoving her backwards harshly until I had her pinned by the shoulders and suspended off the ground so her face was just above my eye level against the nearest wall. Her eyes bulged as she stared down at me, her mouth falling open slightly as she froze in my hold.

'I said, _drop it_!' I seethed, hissing in her ear and silencing her instantly, though I suspect it was more from the shock of the force than fear since, as she so bluntly put it herself, I don't scare her.

My heart pounded angrily against my ribcage as the desire to put my fist through the wall behind her throbbed in my mind. I let my eyes slide shut and forced myself to relax, my grip on her shoulders loosening as I lowered her to the ground. She seemed to sense I was calming down, as she boldly shrugged out from my hold and sidestepped before I could stop her.

The sound of her footsteps disappearing hurriedly down the hall echoed too loudly in my head, and a muffled whimpering told me that she had started crying again.

My eyes shot open angrily and, figuring what the hell, finally released the urge to destroy something by punching a single, clean hole through the plaster in the unsuspecting wall in front of me. Maybe this is why Deidara liked to blow things up so much? It was definitely sounding like a good stress reliever right now.

But seriously, damn it, what was wrong with me recently? It's like I had no control over myself anymore and even the thought of that unnerved me. I needed to get to the bottom of this and, as much as I hated to admit it, I was getting nowhere figuring it out on my own. I was going to need some help…

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**A/N: **Oh my God, I really did it. I killed Kichiro! :( I really liked his character too. BUT, it was necessary for furthering their relationship and making her situation of being in an enemy camp all the more real.

I hope you don't hate me too much! Thanks a million to all the reviewers so far, I honestly don't have the words to thank you :)

Till next time!


	21. Conflicting Thoughts

**A/N: **Updating early because I got some more wonderful reviews and I'm just so darn excited!

Oh and I want to thank my few anonymous guest reviewers too! I normally reply to people personally, but since I can't in some cases I want you to know I'm really thankful for your comments, they keep me inspired! All reviewers do, and this story would be nothing without every one of you:)

Anyway. Still a disclaimer, and on with the story!

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**C****onflicting Tho****ughts**

********** Mina's POV **********

Emiko hadn't spoken a word since she had come bursting in last night. She hadn't cried for long, though I had a feeling she'd been crying a lot more before she arrived in our room.

Figuring she'd need some time alone, I had wandered into the adjoining room and settled myself on the couch. Not five minutes had passed when there was a rhythmic knocking on the door, and in sauntered the blonde male from the other day.

The fact that he was here alone made me suspicious, and from the way he sat himself down on the chair across from me, I couldn't shake the feeling that something was going on elsewhere in their base and that he was just a distraction.

'D-Deidara, was it?' I greeted him with a small wave.

'The one and only, yeah!' He grinned at me, but the expression didn't reach his eyes. Yep, definitely something going on.

'Erm, is everything alright?'

His smile faltered, as though surprised I had picked up on it so quickly. 'What makes you say that, smaller Emiko?'

'It's Mina…' I held back the eye roll at his forgetfulness and continued. 'I just thought it was strange that you came to check on us alone.'

'Oh yeah, well, Sasori has other things to deal with at the moment…' His eyes had a somewhat faraway look in them as he spoke, but he soon shook himself out of it. 'Anyway, you guys must be bored, cooped up in here all day with nothing to do.'

I waited for him to get to the point, wondering where he was going with this line of thought, but movement from the doorway caught our attention.

'Yo, Deidara-_chan_!'

'Hidan, you bastard, what do you want, hm?' Deidara spat, standing to greet the silver-haired male almost suspiciously.

'Pein told me to 'get out of his sight and make myself useful elsewhere' because apparently he doesn't approve of performing rituals in the dining hall. Filthy heathen…'

I gulped down the lump that tried to arise in my throat at the word 'ritual', not finding any need to hear the details on such an event and hoping futilely that he would leave. Sinking further into the couch and praying for invisibility, I held my breath.

'You're stupidity never ceases to amaze me, yeah.'

'Arrogant prick. You're starting to sound like that damn Uchiha… Apart from the speech impediment of course.' My eyes snapped to the male in the doorway. _Uchiha?_

'For the last time, it's not an impediment, it's a habit, _yeah_. Now go find someone else to annoy. I'm busy, hm.' The blonde waved a hand in dismissal but the action only received an amused grin in response, something alighting in Hidan's eyes as his magenta irises moved to greet mine.

'Busy, eh?' The grin that followed was not something I would have missed. 'Need a hand with that?'

My eyebrows knotted furiously at whatever he was implying, but Deidara spoke before I could.

'You're sick, you know that, right?'

The taller and, did I mention, half naked man lifted his hands and pushed his palms out innocently. 'Hey, I just meant in distracting the runt. You're the sicko who's implying otherwise, dipshit!'

I shuddered as Deidara folded his arms across his chest, opening his mouth to speak but being cut off just before the words could form.

'Anyway, I actually brought this.' He tossed a small, shimmering object towards the blonde, who snatched it out of the air with startling precision. Deidara glanced downwards at the item, eyes widening ever so slightly before he met his comrades gaze once more.

'Why did you–'

'Pein was pissing me off so I figured I'd hand these out to a few prisoners. That bastard needs to fuck off with ordering me around.'

I winced at his vulgar language but again refrained from commenting. I spared a moment to pray that Emiko wasn't listening and didn't come barging in from the bedroom to pick a fight with this guy too.

'Well, I'll see you around, blondie. Maybe I'll _catch you later_, runt!' His eyes twinkled mischievously as he stressed that last phrase, making me wonder whether his words actually held a deeper meaning to them. But I didn't dwell on it, he seemed far too dense to actually mean anything deeply.

A strange silence engulfed the room as he left, until Deidara turned sharply to flick that same object in my direction. 'As much as I hate to agree with that guy, we all agree that Pein needs to be knocked down a peg… And I guess you aren't the worst person I could give this to.'

I just barely caught the flying object, albeit clumsily, pausing to examine it and failing to notice the blonde make his way to exit the room.

It looked like a food pill. It was small and round, with a silvery sort of shimmer to it that I could not identify. 'Hey, Deidara? What is…'

I trailed off as I realised I was now alone once again. Sighing in frustration, I tucked the item securely in my pocket and made a mental note to show Emiko the pill later. I was sure she'd know it immediately.

********** Sasori's POV **********

Just one more painstakingly long hour until our oh-so-powerful, reigning leader and his cronies left our base, for which I could not wait. They had already messed up too much of my perfectly good, working system with the shift change, not to mention several personal matters that had now been compromised.

It had taken far too long to calm myself last night, and yes it was true, I had been avoiding her ever since. It annoyed me to no end that my emotions, that I have had in complete control for as long as I can remember, all just seemed to fly off the handle whenever I was around her, and despite my incredibly best efforts, I could no longer deny that certain attachments were forming.

A small, very, very small part of me, tiny in fact, wanted to just throw caution to the wind and go with my gut instinct, but I had managed to hold that part of me in check so far. I was no fool. And I was definitely not going to allow a mere woman to compromise my position so easily… Especially not one like _her_.

I shook my head internally, hurriedly pulling myself out from the tangle of thoughts that was forming and concentrated on what Pein was saying. He had gathered the members of the base and has been going over an unnecessarily detailed description of how he wanted a new extension of the base to look, and lucky me, I had been forcefully dubbed head of the project.

'Now, I want to be sure that you're all perfectly clear on my expectations of you over the next few weeks. I don't feel the need to drag this war out any longer than the rest of us, but unless there are some serious changes to the way things are run I find it hard to believe there will be a favourable outcome for our forces any time soon.' The orange-haired male turned his attention to the blonde beside me. 'Deidara, how are the defence lines doing?'

'They're definitely improving, but I'm going to add a mine field to the area surrounding the medical centre anyway, just in case there's another attack on them, hm.'

'Very well. Sasori?'

'I'll start working on the plans for the extension right away, leader-sama.'

Pein nodded, his gaze lingering on mine warily a few seconds too long for my liking. I didn't appreciate being doubted, and I certainly wasn't keen on the look of mistrust I had just received.

If it hadn't been for the Uchiha opposite me speaking up and querying the leader on something I wasn't remotely interested in, I probably would have commented. I doubted Emiko would remember her meeting with this member, and if she did I'm sure she'd be just as furious at him as she was with me. After all, he was the one who knocked her out after the death of her old comrade.

Damn it, there she was again, always creeping into my mind, unwelcome and uninvited.

'Are there any more questions?' Pein's ringed gaze scanned the group one final time before nodding his head once and moving toward the exit. 'Very well. I will contact you when I have further instruction. On with your business.'

I turned away from the group, vaguely aware of Deidara trailing quietly behind me as I headed back to my room. I suppose I had to face her at some point.

'Hey, Danna?'

'Hm?'

'…Nevermind, yeah.'

I slowed down to throw him a strange look over my shoulder. 'Deidara, I hate when you do this. Just spit it out.'

The blonde, unable to hide his amusement at my obvious irritation, chuckled. 'Alright then. I was just going to ask whats on your mind.'

'What are you talking about?' I really wasn't in the mood for his games.

'Oh come on, Sasori. I'm not as dumb as you make me out to be! I've known you long enough to tell when somethings distracting you…'

…Nosy, observant brat. Choosing to ignore his question, I quickened my pace and rounded a corner, hoping to lose him, but the idiot persisted.

'You know, if you're worried about her, you can tell your old buddy!' I could hear the grin in his voice, but that only served to annoy me more.

'I don't know who you're referring to. Anyway if there was something on my mind, you'd be the last person I'd turn to.'

'Ouch! That's harsh…' He scoffed, but I could still hear the humour behind the words. 'Fine then, if you want to keep it all bottled up inside, be that way. It's not healthy though! You're only human.'

'Don't remind me…' I muttered under my breath, stalking away and finally losing him from my trail. It was only when I was alone again that I began to think, maybe he's right? Although the thought of Deidara being right was almost enough to make me physically sick, I couldn't shake the idea of getting a second opinion, since mine simply wasn't helping me at all these days, it seemed.

My hand clutched the handle of my door tightly. Well, here goes nothing.

I pushed it open cautiously, half expecting Emiko to be on the other side with some sort of weapon aimed and ready to fire. But she wasn't, and I felt my heart sink just a little from disappointment. I glanced around for her younger sister, but again I drew a blank.

_No Sasori, this is a good thing. It means I can start the plans for Pein's stupid base extension without distractions. _

Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I sauntered over to my desk, but as I did so, a tremendous shiver suddenly shot up my spine as though I'd just walked over someone's grave. I paused, long enough to decide I was probably just losing it. I pulled out a blank scroll and slumped into my chair. The plans I came up with were going to be half-hearted at best, and after only a few minutes, I found myself completely lacking in inspiration as my eyes trailed subconsciously towards the bedroom door. It was shut tight and silent. Maybe they were both asleep and hadn't heard me enter?

I frowned and listened intently for a few minutes, finding something unnerving about the silence. _I suppose it couldn't hurt to check on them…_

I stood up hesitantly, making my way quietly towards the closed off room. Pausing outside the door and concentrating a further few moments, I came to an odd conclusion. Something was definitely not right.

Inside, the room was dark. The curtains were pulled completely closed, blocking off any last traces of daylight, but even through the dim lighting and severe lack of visibility I could tell that the room was empty. Shit.

I spun around and scanned the main room again quickly, as if I had simply missed them before and they were actually either asleep on the couch, or slouching on the windowsill just out of sight. But again I found myself alone, and my nose scrunched slightly as I tried to think where else they could be. They couldn't be far, they didn't even know their way around the base, so there wasn't much chance of them being able to escape. Besides, someone would have spotted them by now and raised the alarm, of that I was sure.

So where the hell were they?

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**A/N: **Anyone hazard a guess as to what's going on?

I added an extra little Hidan scene in this chapter because I got some requests to bring him in, unfortunately that's all for the rest of the Akatsuki, just Sasori, Deidara and Itachi left at the base now, so I'm sorry they were only small parts!

Peace out!


	22. Our One Chance

**A/N: **This chapter's finally got the ball moving for the final part of the story. (Yes, I'm on the final arc!) I hope you're liking it so far, thank you so much once again to my reviewers, you keep me going!

Disclaiming the Naruto characters. Unfortunately…

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**Our One Chance**

********** Emiko's POV, One Hour Earlier **********

'Mina! This is a Fukashi pill! Where in the world did you get this?!'My eyes widened as I snapped my eyes from the tiny silvery sphere in my open palm to Mina's oblivious expression.

'…A what?'

'It's erm, a form of disguise I suppose. It sort of hides your chakra from the world, as though you don't exist anymore…'

'So people can't see you? Like you're invisible?' She blinked up at me curiously.

'No they can still see you, just not sense you. But they're extremely rare! Where did you get it?'

She shifted uncomfortably under my stare, noticeably avoiding my eye contact until I pressed her again. 'Mina…'

'It was that half naked guy… I don't remember his name. He was angry at their leader so he said something about giving them out to prisoners…' She trailed off, seemingly putting two and two together. 'You don't suppose…'

'No! Mina, this is insane! The enemy handing out free passes to a chance at freedom? No way, it has to be some sort of trick… Or maybe…'

'Maybe they don't think we'll actually be able to do it?' Mina finished for me.

I lifted the pill to eye level and squinted at the small object.

The silvery tint was a big giveaway, instantly recognisable as a Fukashi pill. I had only ever see them once in my life, during one of my shifts at the hospital back home where a patient had been dealing them like a drug and accidentally overdosed…

Maybe I was wrong, maybe it was something different? It made no sense for the enemy to waste such a rarity on the off chance of prisoners giving them some 'game' to hunt. Then again, the member Mina said had given it to her was Hidan, right? He didn't exactly seem to be one who would think things through.

'So he just handed it to you and left?' I frowned, still finding the situation almost unbelievable.

'Well no. Deidara was there too, he was the one who gave it to me and then he left without another word. They didn't even tell me what it was!'

Now that was a surprise.

I had to admit, the idea of trying it was incredibly tempting. But I couldn't be 100% that I was right in its identification. 'If it is what I think it is, there should be a small black lining just below the surface of the pill…'

'How can we tell if there is?'

In response, I moved away from the bed and into the other room, beckoning for her to follow me. I stood over Sasori's desk and positioned the little pill on the edge of the surface between my thumb and forefinger.

'…We break it.'

It broke with one sharp hit on the wood, snapping clean in half. I turned the pieces over slowly, my mouth falling open as I did so. There it was, a perfect circle lining of black just beneath the silver surface.

'Koko?' Mina asked after a moment. 'What do we do now?'

********** Mina's POV **********

I was just as suspicious as she was, but I couldn't shake the feeling that this was real. A real opportunity, which we'd be stupid to pass up on. Emiko seemed to be lost in thought or having a heavy internal debate with herself, so I touched my hand to her face gently to bring her back to reality. That notion alone was enough to make her jump, though I couldn't blame her for being on edge.

'Koko, I think we should try it.'

Her eyes finally met mine, waiting anxiously for my reasoning.

'It's just, even if it is fake, and it's all a trap, we're no further to escaping from this place without it! And what if it is real, and we don't try?' She still seemed unconvinced, so as a last resort, I added in a small voice. 'We could die here if we don't at least try…'

'Actually… I wonder…' I watched her expression suddenly change to thoughtful, as though just remembering something important. She began to fumble through the desk drawer, pulling out a small waxy box after a moment's search. A matchbox?

'What's that for?'

Her purple irises flickered to mine nervously. 'If these things are burned, sometimes their effects can be changed…'

'…Okay?'

'If I remember right, it could alter our physical visibility too.' She stated slowly, clearly not wanting to get my hopes up. 'I don't mean so we are actually invisible. It shifts people's perception just enough to allow whoever has taken the pill to go undetected. But I could be completely wrong!'

'Then let's try it!' I replied eagerly. I trusted her judgement entirely, her instincts were almost always right, and I was passing up no opportunity whatsoever. My heart jittered nervously as Emiko struck a match carefully, holding it up to the broken pill. I watched in amazement as the silvery surface melted and twisted with the black inner rim, becoming dull and grey.

'Did it work?' I pressed when she pulled away.

'Only one way to find out… But be careful, the dose is halved so if it's worked, we'll only have about twenty minutes until its effects fade and we'll be detected, so we'll have to move quickly.'

I nodded firmly in response. We were really doing this… We could escape…

'And Mina?'

'Yes?'

'Don't get your hopes up. If we run out of time or this is a fake, we'll be in serious trouble.'

'I know.' I watched as she pressed the tablet to her lips and mirrored her action. 'On three?'

'One, two… three.'

I swallowed the pill in one swift gulp, and we waited in tense silence as nothing happened. 'When should it work?'

Emiko looked down at me, her eyebrows pulled together slightly. She opened her mouth to respond but suddenly her head twitched violently upwards and she let out a sharp gasp. I moved to grab her arm and question her, when something inside me began to spiral in the pit of my stomach, making me wince.

It was incredible and horrific all at the same time, like my insides were somehow rearranging themselves and merging together into one firm knot of chakra right in my centre until I could barely even feel it myself. One glance at Emiko's tiny hopeful expression sent shivers down my spine. It was real!

'It's working, Mimi! It's really–' her mouth suddenly snapped shut and she slapped a hand over my mouth a little too strongly. Then I heard it too. Someone else was here. We turned around in synchronisation to face the door, now wide open with an almost disappointed looking redhead standing in its place.

Neither of us dared to breathe, staring straight into his honey colour eyes. But after a moment, his gaze dropped and he let out a short soft breath. We inched backward from him as he headed straight for us, but our eyes locked in confusion as he passed right by us towards his desk, pausing momentarily to shudder strangely before slumping into his desk chair and appearing to begin to work. Couldn't he see us? Had burning the pill worked?

Not taking any other chances, Emiko made a grab for my hand and before I knew it, we were racing through pitch black corridors, searching desperately for an exit.

'Emiko…' I panted as I hurried after her. 'How do we know where to go?'

'We don't!' She called back over her shoulder, darting past a guard who didn't even flinch in our direction.

'Why can't they see us?' I glanced back over my shoulder to the oblivious enemy male who was now spinning a kunai around between his fingers, looking bored.

'I'm not sure, this must be what it meant when I read 'we don't exist'!' I didn't know how much experience my sister had with this sort of pill, but I assumed from that, that she'd at least read about it in one of her medical books.

We rounded a 90 degree corner and I heard her let out a breathy laugh. 'Look Mimi! There's an exit!'

We ran for the light at the end of the corridor, practically diving out into the evening air and almost cowering under the harshly lit training field we had just entered.

'Damn it, there's no gate…' She cursed under her breath as she made to re-enter the base, but I pulled on her wrist before she could.

'Wait! There's a gap, over there!' I pointed to the wire mesh fence around the training ground. In one corner there was a jagged piece of wire where it looked to have been cut with something sharp. 'Maybe one of the other prisoners had the same idea as us and used that as an escape?'

Emiko, figuring it was worth a try, nodded and began to move towards the corner, when a deafening siren sounded from the overhead speakers, followed by a mechanic voice.

'Warning: Prisoner escape. Code 388914 is active. Repeat, prisoner escape. All guards to their stations.'

My sister's eyes flashed in panic, grabbing my hand once again and tearing across the field to the gap. She shoved me through first with ease, before ducking to squeeze through after me, hissing when she snagged her shoulder on a loose strand of wire mesh.

A tiny piece of material tore off from her loose black T-shirt, but we had more pressing matters to deal with, like running for our lives. If Emiko's guess was right about our time scale, we only had about two minutes left before we could be fully detected again, and neither of us wanted to risk that.

And so we ran. We ran like hell.

********** Sasori's POV **********

'Sasori. Status report.' Pein barked infuriatingly at me. He, Hidan and Kisame had returned immediately upon hearing the emergency sirens in the distance, and was now channelling his anger toward the only sane member he could find, since Itachi was gathering a retrieval team and Deidara had taken off after a small group of prisoners he'd spotted running for the hills. Literally.

'Sixteen prisoners missing so far, but there could be more we haven't checked on yet. Nine of them are from the medical team we brought in from the enemy camps. In total, four have been retrieved.'

'Nine of the medics, you say? Anyone I'd know?' He threw me a sideways warning glance, though how I was supposed to interpret that I wasn't sure.

I countered his question. 'Is Zetsu with you? He'd come in very useful for this.'

'He's underground searching the surrounding area, listening for vibrations in the earth that may give away any locations.'

From beside me, Hidan suddenly let out a rather loud, obnoxious laugh, apparently unable to hold it in any longer.

'Care to let us in on the joke, Hidan?' Pein's eyes narrowed dangerously.

The Jashinist smirked. 'No joke at all, _Leader-sama_. Although you might wanna do a headcount on the medication cupboard at some point…'

Before he could even finish his sentence, Hidan was rammed forcefully backwards and pinned to the wall by his throat. I had to roll my eyes at the smirk he still forced onto his stupid face, despite struggling to breath.

'You _imbecile_!' Pein hissed. 'What did you do?'

Trying to shrug, Hidan managed to spit out an amused reply. 'Fucking relax, it's just a bit of fun. Besides, they won't get far. It's just their chakra that's hidden – Oof!'

He fell to the floor as Pein released him, moving his fingers in soothing circles at his temples, fighting a growing migraine. He obviously didn't find this 'fun'.

'You should go and join the guards at the back exit, they're all useless without instruction…' He growled to me, clearly not impressed with the situation.

'Yes sir.' I didn't hang around a second longer than necessary. I'd seen Pein's temper flare much worse than this, and I was not an idiot like that reckless zealot.

I found the guards in a disarray in the rear training ground, completely useless just as Pein had said. I marched into the centre of the squad and snapped at them all to shut up.

'Orders, sir!' One of the men had the decency to salute, but I had no time for manners right now.

'Why is nobody in their designated posts? Line the hallways immediately. You three check the basement cells, do a prisoner head check and file your report to the announcement room ASAP. Move!'

The men scattered, leaving me alone in the field. I was about to go and find Deidara to join in his hunt for the escapees when something flickered in the corner of my eye. I glanced around, my gaze landing on a small piece of black torn fabric in the corner of the grounds, caught on loose piece of the wire mesh fence.

_So, some got out this way too?_ I frowned as I tugged the fabric free from its captor to examine it further. _Is this…? No. It could belong to any of the medics, they all dressed in black._

The speaker above me spluttered to life. 'Status Report. Seven medics have been caught and returned. Three enemy prisoners have been killed on sight. Repeat. Seven medics have been returned and three enemy prisoners have been killed on sight. Six prisoners remain unfound.'

Seven medics caught and three dead? That leaves four prisoners and two medics. And I'd be willing to bet I know which direction they left in…

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**A/N: **I know I said Pein and co had left but they won't have any more of a role now, so technically that was their last appearance.

Ps: Fukashi means Invisibility in Japanese. My completely unique and original creative naming habit strikes again…

In a while, Crocodile!


	23. The Reserve Camp

**A/N: **So I've been really ill with a bad cold lately, which means I've had plenty of time sitting around doing nothing but writing, so I'm actually quite up to date with this story now, lucky for you!

Still a disclaimer!

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**The Reserve Camp**

********** Emiko's POV **********

I'm not sure how long we ran for, or where we were even headed, all I know is that I never once let go of Mina's hand and never once looked back. I had to get her out of there. I had to save my sister. Nothing mattered in this world more than Mina, and I needed her safe.

By the time our legs had practically collapsed beneath us and we finally sat down to rest, it was almost morning. It was only now that I truly realised our situation. Part of me wanted to laugh and cry, tears of relief and freedom, but I knew we weren't out of the woods yet. Another, more rational part of me wanted to start moving again immediately, for fear of being found, but one glance at my sister told me we wouldn't be moving anywhere again anytime soon. She was exhausted. And to be honest, so was I.

And then there was one final, tiny little part of me that for some reason I could not fathom, wanted to go back.

Why? Why would even the tiniest corners of my soul want to return to a life of fear and imprisonment? What, on this God-forsaken Earth, could I possibly miss about that hellhole?! And then, the stubborn, interfering little voice inside my head whispered, _not what, but who?_

Shaking that disturbing thought right out of my head as soon as it had dared to come, I slumped down further onto the rough grass next to Mina, leaning back on my hands. We had been running non-stop, so I supposed we could afford a few minutes rest, surely.

'How are you holding up, Mimi?'

Mina turned to me, a slight frown tainting her youthful features as she responded through pants. 'I can keep going. I'm alright!'

I threw her an incredulous look. 'No one has that much stamina! We can take five.'

'…Do you think they're looking for us?'

I thought for a moment before answering her honestly. 'Probably not. As much as I hate to admit it, we're not worth it. But all the same, don't let your guard down.'

'Do we have a plan?'

I blinked at the younger girl beside me. 'In case they come after us?'

She nodded, and I had to smile at her incredible ability to remain strategical after everything we'd gone through. 'I doubt they will, but we'll keep to the forests and unmarked trails all the same.'

'…For how long?'

'Until we reach our destination I guess.'

'Which is what?'

I turned my gaze skywards, as though staring longingly at the clouds would somehow grant us the power to lift off the ground and magically float to the ideal location. 'Home.'

********** Two Hours Later **********

A soft rustling of leaves was all it took to awaken me from the involuntary slumber I had accidentally slipped into. I guess even in my sleep I was on edge, though a quick scan of our surroundings told me that Mina was the same, as my orchid irises locked with hers, also recently opened.

'We fell asleep…' She muttered almost incoherently. It didn't surprise me. An entire night of running would do that to the average human, not to mention that one possible side effect of the Fukashi pill was drowsiness.

The wind had picked up, and another wave of air swept through the trees overhead, the noise making me nervous.

'Come on, Mina. We should get moving…' I trailed off into silence as a flicker of foreign chakra suddenly shifted on the breeze. I lifted one finger to my lips quickly, indicating for Mina to be quiet. She complied instantly, freezing on the spot as her eyes flitted around the area suspiciously.

I momentarily debated whether or not to conceal my chakra or to stretch it out in search of whoever else was out there, but decided quickly that I would rather know where to be wary of them approaching from than remain in the dark, so to speak.

It took me a few moments until I finally latched onto its source. I gulped audibly as I assessed the chakra signature. It was male, and approaching quickly. It was strong, too, which was unnerving. I inched towards Mina, positioning myself so we were back to back.

Then, to my dismay, the power I had been tracking with my senses completely dissipated into the atmosphere without a trace. This was bad. Whoever it was had suddenly decided to mask their chakra, which could only mean that we had been detected. The next few seconds ticked by in utter silence, neither of us daring to breathe as we waited like criminals on death row. Was this it? Was this how it all ended?

A twig snapped to my left and I started violently, earning a small yelp of surprise from my sister.

I didn't even have a chance to mumbled words of reassurance to her as something or someone darted out of the thick foliage in a blur of black and green. A hand shoved my backwards forcefully by the throat, lifting my off the ground and pinning my back to a tree. My eyes snapped to his, registering the familiarly stoic expression I recognised too well instantly.

I almost wished it was Sasori.

'Damn it, Sasuke you pathetic, ridiculous bastard, put me down!' I snarled through gritted teeth, clawing furiously at his wrist.

'You're insults are lacking their usually charm, Emiko.' He smirked as he dropped me – literally – to the ground. 'You look like you've seen better days.'

'Sasuke? What're you…' I vaguely registered Mina's voice from over his shoulder, but I was too busy glaring bloody daggers into his big stupid face.

He threw me one final smirk before tugging his khaki sleeve that I had been savaging back down to his forearm and turning to reply to her half spoken question. 'I'm on my way back to our camp. I think the better question would be what are _you_ doing out here?'

I stared incredulously. 'Is that supposed to be funny? 'Cause I'm sure as hell not laughing.'

Mina stepped between us and, becoming the only real reason I didn't launch myself at that damn Uchiha, spoke again softly while I glowered. 'We managed to get away from the enemy base, but we had no idea where we were so we just kept–'

'Woah, woah. What are you talking about?' Sasuke's eyebrows knitted together, his dark eyes narrowing in confusion.

'Oh my god… You don't know, do you?' I breathed, all traces of anger quickly becoming replaced with understanding.

'Know what…?' He clearly didn't approve of my knowing something that he clearly didn't.

It made sense, I supposed. Taking in his appearance now with a more level head, I could tell he hadn't sought out medical attention in at least three weeks. If I had to guess we'd probably been in that place for at least two… Which meant he wouldn't have visited our old medic and storage camp in order to discover the ambush, which begged the question, did anyone know?

Mina explained it from there, leaving out the details on a certain red-haired traitor much to my relief, while I continued to analyse our ally's physical condition. His black and green camouflage outfit was torn and dirtied, with two large crimson stains covering most of his left shoulder and lower back. He was leaning his weight to the right, and I realised with disdain that I was going to have to heal all that. Then something else hit me.

'Hey, Sasuke?'

He blinked at me, probably surprised to find my voice lacking it's usually hostility towards him replaced by blatant curiosity. 'Hm?'

'Why are you alone?'

He laughed once, humourlessly. 'Long story short, my squad are all dead and I was doubling back to find the reserve troops when I noticed two familiar chakra signatures…'

I frowned, not appreciating his bluntness, but then, we _were_ at war. What did I expect?

Mina, however, perked up slightly at this. 'Reserve troops? So, we must be heading in the right direction for safer territory, right?'

The Uchiha nodded once before inclining his head in the direction he'd originally been going in. 'That's right. But we aren't safe here, and we shouldn't linger in one place for too long. So let's move.'

With that, he took off into the trees, giving us no option to either accept or decline the unspoken offer to escort us. I rolled my eyes and huffed, but Mina was already falling into step behind him, and I had no intention of leaving her alone with him right now, ally or not.

As I followed, I couldn't help but notice his broken gait. I was about to comment, but Mina appeared beside me, speaking in hushed tones so only I could hear.

'You have to let me in on it, Koko. Why do you hate him so much?' She apparently mistook my anaylising staring as glares of hatred, not that she was wrong.

I let out a sigh, she had waited long enough. 'Alright… It was high school. He, being the arrogant bastard he is, was pissed that I didn't swoon over him like the rest of the student body. So this one time, he had me cornered, asking me all these stupid questions and trying to determine if I 'batted for the other team', I believe his expression was.'

Mina raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment.

'He basically forced me to kiss him.' _Damn, I said it out loud._ But I guess it was time I told _someone_ about it, it was my first kiss and I had been holding onto the grudge for way too long.

'W-what? He…' Mina looked appalled, then more solemnly added, 'I never thought he'd go that far…'

I knew she had grown a little attached to the warrior she'd been assigned to heal over time, but at least now she had all the facts to make up her own mind about him properly.

'Hey Uchiha!' I called, gaining his attention as I changed the subject before Mina could continue this awkward conversation. 'Do you need healing?' I was going to regret asking that, but I guess I couldn't argue against helping someone I could unfortunately called a comrade.

He slowed to regard me momentarily, some unidentified emotion flashing through his onyx eyes before reluctantly touching a hand to his bloodied shoulder and coming to a complete halt.

Whether it was his pride that refused to allow him to verbally accept, or he simply couldn't be bothered wasting his breath when it was obvious he was in pain, I don't know. But pretty soon I could feel the familiar warm glimmer of healing chakra throbbing in my palms as I pressed them lightly against his collarbone. It was a simple enough wound to heal, so it didn't take me too long. What worried me was the sheer amount of blood loss he'd already suffered.

'You know, you should probably take it easy for a while…' I started slowly, studying his unchanging, calm expression as he stared at nothing in particular, waiting for me to continue. 'Look, you've obviously lost a lot of blood, and I'm guessing you're already experiencing some light-headedness. If you continue to over-exert yourself like this you won't last much longer.'

'Wow, Emmy, it almost sounds like you care.' And the annoying jerk returned, armed with that infuriating nickname and a sideways smirk for good measure. I vaguely noticed Mina adopt the beginnings of a frown. Maybe she was finally seeing him the way I did?

'Fine. Do whatever you want.'

'Maybe you should rest, Sasuke…' Mina piped up, looking about to say more until he shrugged away from my palms and clambered back onto his feet. Or maybe not.

'I'm stronger than you give me credit for. I'll be fine. Besides, I can rest when we get back. We aren't far now, another hour or so if I had to guess.'

I didn't even bother to argue with him. I guess if he were to collapse, at least he'd be accompanied by two competent medics.

We arrived at the camp just under an hour later, I couldn't help but feel a twinge of disappointment that he had been right. Stubborn jackass. I hated him being right.

The reserve camp held a completely different layout to what I had been expecting, and was much smaller than I'd hoped. It was essentially just a circle of six tents, decorated with patchwork sheets in various shades of green, and an unstable-looking wooden hut with only three solid walls. Inside I could see a line of swords, bows and shields stacked along the back, suggesting that was their armoury. It really was quite pathetic.

Reading my unimpressed expression, the Uchiha let out an uncharacteristically nervous sigh and lowered his voice until Mina was unable to hear him. 'I know what you're thinking. It doesn't look good.'

I turned to meet his almost resigned gaze, a frown etching onto my features as I opened my mouth to reply, but a loud, obnoxious voice cut me off.

'Sasuke! I was wondering where you'd buggered off to. Long time no see!' The male who had approached was almost feral looking, with his fang-like teeth and crimson war paint covering his cheeks making me stare a little too long. He clearly noticed, pointing his attention to me. 'Who's the chick?'

I scowled at the sexist term, but Sasuke ignored my discomfort, not that that was surprising. 'She's just a medic, and this is her sister, Mina.'

My fisted clenched in irritation at being passed over so quickly, and had it been anyone other than Mr Selfless here I would have been surprised by their rudeness.

The stranger, Kiba, I learned, suddenly grew serious as he questioned Sasuke again. 'And your team?'

The Uchiha only shook his head, no explanation needed. His comrade offered a vaguely sympathetic nod.

'I see. Well, there's more bad news I'm afraid…' His eyes flittered to mine and my sisters before back to Sasuke's, but when the other male made no move to stop him, he continued. 'We lost contact with the other remaining teams about three days ago. Captain Asuma sent out an urgent response eagle yesterday, but the bird has yet to return…'

'Wait, what does that mean?' My eyes widened as I interrupted.

'It means,' Kiba paused, throwing one final glance at Sasuke before his black eyes settled back on mine. 'Unless we receive a response by tomorrow night, we're more than likely the last team to be left alive. And we are losing this war.'

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**A/N: **I'm very dramatic, I've noticed. I should change the genre of this fiction to romance and drama...

I also have an announcement, I have officially pre-written the final chapter of this story! It will end on Chapter 25, and I really hope people don't kill me when they read it… O.o

When I've finished uploading for this though, I'm thinking about posting for a HidanxOC fic I mention earlier in the A/Ns. I hope you're excited!


	24. There's Hope Yet

**A/N: **Second to last chapter! I can't wait to hear what you think, you've all been amazing and I can't thank you enough.

Still a disclaimer!

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**There's Hope Yet**

Two hours. That was all that was left until this war was declared over, and there would be a ruthless, completely undeserving victory for Chitani. If we were the only ones left, there wasn't a chance in hell that we would come through this alive, let alone pull the war back into our favour.

I was sitting on a hill just above the campsite, watching the horizon with hopeful eyes, waiting for the eagle that had been sent out in search of allies. It was a nice view, I suppose. Not much to see other than a thick carpet of trees and glowing red sunset, but it was nice.

With Mina lying with her head on my lap, breathing evenly as she slept, I let my mind drift away into the tangerine clouds, back to Ookiimura, to our little apartment. Back to the hospital I had worked the occasional shift at to cover the bills my mother neglected. And in my mind, I took Mina with me. And we were safe. We were free.

Now one hour. Time was moving in deliberate slow motion, and the sky I had been staring at was still painfully bare and eagle free. The once orange and pink hue of the clouds had now faded to a dull grey with a silvery lining as the moon heaved herself up into the fat approaching starless night.

Mina let out a small cough in her sleep, making me flinch, but she didn't wake up. I was glad really, because I didn't want her to see the bleakness in my eyes. I couldn't even be bothered to glare as Sasuke approached and sat down to join in my watch, so things must have been bad.

We remained there in silence, with only the sound of my sister's soft breathing to remind us we were still on this Earth.

Just half an hour left.

'…You know what's funny?' I mused out loud, not really caring if he bothered to indulge me or not.

'Enlighten me.'

'I don't even know what this war is about.'

He shot me an incredulous look, one eye brow raised and his mouth set in a thin, disapproving line.

'Don't look at me like that. I mean, think about it. Why would I? My village had nothing to do with the affairs between Chitani and Kazekuni. We just had the misfortune of being neighbours with one side and bound by duty and that damn tradition, our people were forced to get involved. So it's funny that we're all here, dying for some completely unknown cause.'

The Uchiha pursed his lips as he scanned the horizon once more. 'That _is_ funny.' But neither of us laughed. It wasn't _that_ kind of funny.

After a few minutes of silence, Sasuke turned back to me, looking slightly confused. 'So you have no idea what this war is about?'

'All I know is that Chitani's Leader is a bit of a bully and, now I'm just going on assumptions here, I'm guessing Kazekuni didn't approve of his plan for world domination.'

'Well, there's more detail to it than that, but essentially you're right.'

'Like what?'

'You really are clueless.'

I gave a half-hearted eye-roll. 'And you'll never change.'

I assumed that was all he was going to say on the matter, but apparently, people are more willing to give information when they've got nothing left to lose.

'Their leaders have a history. I heard they used to be strong allies, the West and the East, but something happened several years back that broke them apart.'

'What happened?'

The Uchiha pursed his lips as though debating how much he could tell me, but then, we weren't exactly seconds from victory.

'Chitani's leader was deceitful and mistrusting, he believed that Kazekuni were plotting against them after a recent drop in their trade with foreign lands. No one seemed to want their crops anymore, and no one wanted their animals. The real reason was that the quality of care for the animals was just downright appalling and their crops were always harvested too early. He had always been careless and selfish, and other people were started to notice. His name is Madara, by the way, Chitani's leader.'

'Madara…' I pondered the name momentarily, but I had another question. 'Then why did Chitani blame Kazekuni when they were supposed to be allies?'

Sasuke shrugged. 'I guess it's easier to point the finger than to own up to your own mistakes. He's a very proud but stubborn man, and all he could see was that Kazekuni's profits were continuing to rise while his were being dragged through the dirt.'

'So he decided to start a war over pride?'

'No, he didn't start the war. If you'd let me finish, I'll tell you.'

I scowled, but kept my mouth shut. Listening to this was better than sitting in a harrowing silence waiting for an eagle that would never come.

'It was the actually Leader of Kazekuni who'd finally had enough. Word had got around that Chitani had started to deal in less than honourable trades to make up for their losses, and Hashirama could no longer just stand by and watch innocent lands become bullied into submission and robbed of their achievements.'

'Hashirama?'

'Kazekuni's village leader.'

'Oh. What was Chitani doing that was so wrong it fashioned reason to start a war?'

'From what I've heard, it was mostly their dealings with Akatsuki that sparked the declaration.'

'The Mercenary Guild?' I shuddered at the thought. I had heard of them, they were heartless.

'They're more like professional hired assassins. They're lead by a callous, unfeeling bastard who believes himself to be a God, and his worthless bunch of cronies will do just about anything he says, not just for the money, but because they enjoy it.'

There was something almost personal in the way Sasuke spoke of Akatsuki. Something I doubted he was willing to expand on. Still, I tried anyway. 'You seem to know a lot about them…' I began slowly.

'What are you implying?' He regarded me with hatred-filled black eyes, and I instantly regretted commenting.

'No, nothing! I was just curious…' A tiny memory niggled at the back of my mind, something of my time in the enemy base, though there'd been no mention of Akatsuki as far as I could remember, but had there been something else relevant?

'Anyway, Hashirama had enough. He tried to reason with Chitani but the leader was having none of it. So here we are. The last resort.'

'Huh, some last resort we turned out to be…' I mumbled.

Mina suddenly stirred, her nose scrunching slightly as she lifted a hand to rub the sleep from her eyes.

'Koko?' Her little voice was a mere flutter on the breeze, and I couldn't help but smile as she shifted herself into a sitting position opposite me, her back to the horizon I'd been watching so determinedly.

'No news yet.' I answered her before she could ask. She nodded, and turned towards the sky.

'Actually, Sasuke?' Mina suddenly piped up, surprising us both by who she addressed.

'Hm?'

'I now this is a little out of place to ask, but it's been on my mind for a while. I heard something when I was in the enemy's base. I'm not sure what to think of it, but I wondered if you might?'

'Think of what, Mina?' I pressed before the Uchiha could reply himself.

'One of their warriors mentioned an Uchiha while I was alone with them, and I'm pretty sure they didn't mean you…'

_Of course! How could I have forgotten that so easily?_

I whipped my head round to gauge Sasuke's reaction, though with the death glare I was receiving I wasn't sure it was worth risking my life for the answer.

'What are you glaring at me for?! I didn't say anything!' I frowned, immediately on the defence.

His eyes flicked back to my sister. 'What did you hear us talking about?'

'Huh? N-nothing…' Mina stammered, obvious confusion spreading over her face. 'I just remember hearing the name…'

For a while, none of us spoke, falling into an awkwardly tense silence that could be cut with a butter knife.

'Itachi Uchiha.'

I glanced at the warrior beside me. '…What?'

He let out a long, slow breath before continuing. 'Itachi Uchiha is my older brother. He's part of Akatsuki. That's how I know so much about them.'

My mouth fell open, eyes widening like saucers as he stared off into space.

'You're brother's part of Akatsuki? Then, are they working for the enemy?' Mina asked cautiously, careful not to arouse another sharp reaction from the Uchiha we knew.

I nodded slowly, turning to direct my own question at our only source of information. 'How many other members do you know in the organisation?'

I was almost afraid of the answer, but the look in his eyes as he began to respond confirmed my worst fears. 'I don't know them all, but there's their leader, Pein, who I told you about before. Then there's a freakishly tall man, with a blue tint to his skin called Kisame, who works closely with my brother. There's also supposedly some sort of explosions expert, and one other I know of…'

He didn't even have to say the final name. I knew exactly who he was talking about, and I could tell from the way he paused that he was waiting for me to figure it out.

'When did you find out?' I asked, my voice patheticly small.

'About 24 hours ago, when Mina told me about the ambush. I should have guessed as soon as he was reported MIA. Pretty stupid of me, really.'

I had nothing else to say on the matter. The facts were all pretty clear now, and apparently, the other two felt the same because once again we were engulfed by the silence.

Five minutes left to go.

Honestly? When I saw the faint silhouette of a distant bird on the horizon, I really did think I was seeing things, which is why I was so surprised when Sasuke suddenly leapt to his feet beside me.

'It's here…' His words were murmured in such disbelief that they were almost completely lost to the wind. Then, more loudly he shouted. 'It's here!'

Several voices called out in response from the campsite below, daring to believe the words they had just heard.

'Koko…' I was vaguely aware of Mina tugging my hand, but I was too busy squinting at the silhouette.

The bird drew in closer, its details becoming clearer as it approached. It swooped down at the last minute, darting into the depths of the camp.

'What are we waiting for?' Sasuke demanded, shoving past us and racing down the hill. Mina half shouted and half laughed my name, excitedly pulling me out of my shock and after the Uchiha.

The warriors had already formed a small crowd around the Captain, who was currently skim-reading the reply note with impressive speed. When he finished, his deep brown eyes flashed with relief as he met our expectant stares.

'Only the two farthest squads from us are left, that's why the reply took so long to return, but their numbers are high. But not only that…'

I swear, there was a sudden drop in oxegyn as the entire group at that one moment simultaneously sucked in air in suspense.

'…The Land of Fire has signed a treaty of allegiance to our cause. Which means–'

'Which means we've just gained over two thousand more warriors to fight with us against Chitani!' Kiba interrupted after reading over Captain Asuma's shoulder.

A chorus of cheers and laughter broke out through the group, and it was only when I felt the tears streaming down my cheeks that I realised this was the hope we had been waiting for.

The eagle had returned, and we were not alone. We could actually win this.

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**A/N:** I'm looking forward to posting the final chapter, I'm already planning a sequel but don't get your hopes up, I doubt that'll be ready for quite a while. Beside, I need to work on some uni projects now I can't use this as an excuse anymore! Dx

See you in the next chapter! :)


	25. The Warriors Disappear

**A/N: **I've actually entered this fic in a competition on Inkitt after someone recommended the Fandom contest they were holding. If you search for www dot inkitt dot com slash fandom2 – scroll down it's there currently in the top 20! Ranked number 10 last time I checked. Or just search Inkitt Fandom 2 contest on google and find it on the list on there.

So if you've enjoyed the story it would mean the world if you could throw me a vote for that :)

I want to wish everyone a massive Merry Christmas too, since I probably won't get the chance after this has finished!

Disclaimer as always, now without further ado, I present the final chapter of 'You Belong To Me'!

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**The Warriors Disappear**

I was surprised at how fast everything moved after that one short letter. The Land of Fire was as vast as an ocean, and within three days, our tiny makeshift camp had already expanded to over four times its original size. These warriors weren't playing around either, they were here to end a war, and they wasted no time in setting about to prepare.

The camp was bustling, even though it was late in the evening and quite a few of the warriors had resigned to their tents to rest. Training sessions had been going on as new squad teams were formed and they all got used to each other's fighting styles. There were rumours that Tsunade of the Leaf Village was somewhere amongst the crowds, though I had yet to catch a glimpse of her. Mina and I had been rushed off our feet, being the only two medics in the original section of the camp where most of the minor injuries were brought, almost like a walk-in clinic for smaller medical problems.

But, we were only human, and we all needed our sleep. With Mina finishing up in the 'clinic' for the night, I trudged along behind a row of darkened tents, my thoughts only focusing on how soon I could reach my sleeping bag. Fortunately, I had been placed right at the foot of the hill behind the campsite, which was much quieter and less occupied.

I breathed a sigh of relief when my head finally reached its lumpy destination, though the lack of comfort in my pillow was hardly something I was willing to concern myself with tonight. Sleep first. I closed my eyes, and was out in seconds.

********** A few hours later **********

It's one thing to be woken early after an incredibly long day of hard-work, but it's just plain rude to do so by pressing your hand over a sleeping person's mouth and using your other to shake their shoulder roughly. Then again, nothing should surprise me anymore.

'Mmm!' I half-growled, unable to use actual words of insult due to the hand clamping down harder over my mouth. My eyes flew open, glowing with irritation that quickly dissipated into horror.

The culprit watched the colour drain from my face as recognition dawned. I registered his rust red locks instantly, not missing how he hesitated before speaking as though debating if it was worth his life.

'Don't scream… I'll move my hand, but don't. Scream.'

My furious eyes were wide and bulging, and I threw him a silent warning that, unless he removed his hand right this instant, I would bite it off. He seemed to get the message.

However, the second his hand lifted from my face, I open my mouth to shout. Unfortunately for me he was far too quick and, before I had even gathered enough breath to attempt it, the hand returned to silence my cries.

'What did I just tell you?' He gave me a very condescending frown, like an adult talking down to a misbehaving child.

I scowled my best I'll-do-whatever-I-want-thank-you-very-much scowl, only making him smirk slightly at my rage.

'Last chance…' He promised, as he loosened his grip experimentally. I hated to comply, but this was getting us nowhere.

'You are proving awfully difficult to shake off, you know that, right?' I hissed, ignoring the look of mock innocence he threw me. 'Sasori, what are you doing here? How did you find me? …And where the hell are we?'

I fired my questions at the redhead, pushing up from where I'd been lying so I was now leaning back on my elbows. We were definitely somewhere outdoors, still in the forest I guessed by the surrounding foliage, and it was dark. How had he got here and snuck me out without someone noticing?

'We're not far from your tent.' He motioned behind him in what I assumed was the direction of the campsite. 'It wasn't easy I'll admit, and I had to be quick, you've barely been alone for 5 minutes since you got here…'

'Yeah, well, there's been a lot going on… Wait, how long have you been here for?!'

He rolled his eyes at my late reaction, but quickly passed over my question. 'I don't like to keep people waiting, so I'll get right to the point. I'm here to warn you.'

'Warn me? Or threaten me?'

'_Warn_ you. We received orders from the leader of Chitani the morning after you…' He pursed his lips as though debating the correct word. He settled with, 'left.'

Orchid eyes narrowing, I visibly tensing when he leaned forward and I was suddenly very aware of what could be a very compromising position, should we be discovered.

'Look, whether you believe me or not, the warriors should retreat immediately, unless you all want to die.'

'You'd like that, wouldn't you? Our retreat. A nice easy victory for Chitani, huh. Was this Pein's idea? Or do some Akatsuki members actually think for themselves?' I scoffed, trying to look disgusted, but with his face now hovering extremely close to mine, it was hard to react accordingly without the faint blush that now dusted my cheeks.

From up close, I could see the surprise in his eyes at the mention of Akatsuki. He'd obviously kept that one quiet very purposefully.

'Emiko…' My pulse quickened as his breath washed over me, my eyes finding his marginally parted mouth, while my body subconsciously leaned into him. _Damn it, why was I still having these reactions? After everything he's done, I should be repulsed by him. And yet…_

'About Kichiro…' My eyes snapped back up to his at the sudden change of topic, but he was gazing somewhere off to my left. I frowned as he continued to avoid eye contact, not used to the uncharacteristic notion.

Finally, he let out a soft sigh. 'I didn't realise you cared about him so much. Even though his life wasn't worth much, I could have prevented his death.'

I blinked, confused by the strange apology, if you could call it that. His gaze had still yet to meet mine, but I could clearly read his strained expression. He was evidently not used to apologising.

'What brought that on?'

His eyebrows twitched together, but not quite enough to frown. 'I needed you to know that I regret not doing more.'

Not wanted, _needed_. What did _that_ mean?

I debated my options. On the one hand, this was Sasori. He was manipulative and selfish and dangerous. He wasn't stupid, everything he did had a reason behind it that more often than not was of some benefit to him. But then, why did I feel this incessant need to trust him? It made sense that this was all another trick to get us to back down, and it was very conveniently timed with the arrival of our allies. But what if he was telling the truth, and I ignored him. Would I be sentencing us all to death? I needed more convincing.

'…Suppose I do believe you, and by some miraculous twist of fate, we manage to convince the troops to retreat. What then? What happens to you?'

His hazel irises chose this moment to lift and reconnect with mine, and I faltered at the sheer look of vulnerability they held. It almost made me want to comfort him.

'I guess that's up to you.' He stated. He seemed so sincere, so honest. I scanned his face for any traces of deception, but I came up blank.

'Why? For all you know, I could agree to this plan and then hand you over to the army for torture and imprisonment!'

'You could.' He agreed, not making this any easier for me to get my head around.

'So why leave it up to me?' I was beyond confused, shaking my head and forcing him to move backwards as I sat upright, speaking again before he could. 'Sasori. Tell me why you're here. Tell me honestly. _Please_.'

'…Because I trust you. Akatsuki have orders to detonate this entire forest, burn it all to the ground in less than twenty-four hours from now… And I don't want you to die, Emiko.' He paused, chewing on the inside of his cheek as though deciding on whether or not to expand on his reason. Apparently, my unconvinced expression decided for him, because he finally whispered, so lowly that, had I been any farther away, I would have missed it, 'I'd miss you if you were gone…'

In Sasori terms, I guess that was as close to admitting he cared about someone that I was ever going to get. If it was any other person, I would have been stunned when he suddenly closed the gap between us, and our lips moulded together in perfect harmonisation. I was also unsurprised when I found myself responding to his touch, my hands finding their way to his unruly red hair like a natural reaction. It wasn't a tender kiss, it was almost desperate, and promising.

There's a saying that goes 'Actions speak louder than words'. I couldn't think of a better way to describe this man than that. Honestly, he'd never given me any reason to believe that he actually wanted me dead. If anything, his previous actions only proved time and time again that he did, in fact, want to keep me alive. Was this his reason all along? Did he actually care about me?

When he eventually, albeit reluctantly, broke the connection, we stared each other down, equally analysing the other's meaningful expression.

'So…' I began slowly after a painstakingly long few minutes. 'What do I tell the warriors?'

His hazel eyes filled with surprise and, before he could hide it, a tiny smile had crept over his features. But it was short-lived, as his usual calm, composed façade quickly replaced the reaction. 'You don't tell them anything. I will.'

Now it was my turn to be surprised. 'What makes you think they'll believe you?'

'They might not. But don't you think they'd question your sources if you suddenly decided they needed to retreat because the enemy was about to launch an attack that would inevitably kill them all?'

I shuddered at the thought. 'Good point. So, we go together then?'

The small smile returned, tugging innocently at the corners of his mouth. He stood up and offered me his hand. I took it cautiously, allowing him to pull me up beside him. When we started to move, he kept hold of my hand, our fingers locking together like reunited pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.

As we reached the line of trees separating us from the warrior campsite, Sasori paused momentarily, allowing me one final chance to change my mind.

I only nodded, and he squeezed my hand lightly in reassurance. I couldn't help but wonder how he could be so calm about this when I, personally, felt like my head was about to implode.

I took a final deep breath for good measure, before taking the lead and entering the campsite nervously.

********** Sasori's POV **********

Out of everything I could have possibly imagined to happen in the next few moments, this was definitely not one of them. Emiko was apparently just as confused as I was.

'W-where is everyone?' She stammered, taking an unconscious step towards the eerily quiet camp. Not just quiet, empty. Completely lifeless, not a soul in sight.

'Mina?' Taking a few hesitant steps forward, she froze. It didn't take me long to realise she was searching for their presences with her chakra, sending it out like an invisible fishing net, only to come back emptyhanded.

'Where are they?' She asked again, sounding rather like a small, lost child. Lifting her arms, her hands stretched out as though reaching for some invisible source of support, confusion and a hint of fear blatantly evident on her face. 'S-sasori… Did you do this?'

I could only shake my head as I tried to get my head around it myself. I couldn't even find the motive to frown at her attempt at blaming me. _What is going on?_

The idea that the warriors had sensed my presence and were about to ambush me crossed my mind, even though I had been excruciatingly thorough in remaining undetected when entering the camp. But something about that explanation didn't make sense. Why would a whole army waste their time in ambushing one warrior? As much as I hated to admit it, even I couldn't fight them all off on my own…

I watched Emiko briefly as she stumbled towards one of the tents, ripping open the flap to reveal its empty contents. Backing away slightly, she turned to stare blankly at me from where she was stood, mystified.

Moving further into the site suspiciously, I paused when I reached a freshly cut tree stump that appeared to have been used as a table. I touched my hand to a one of the pots on it, containing a thick, unidentifiable substance, though I guessed it was what the Warriors dared to call soup. It was still warm, as though freshly made and placed, ready to be eaten.

It was as if they had all just vanished off the face of the Earth. How could an entire army just disappear? And what, more importantly, would we do now?

I turned back to where my only companion had been standing just seconds ago. But she was nowhere to be seen.

'Emiko?' My voice was quiet and testing, as though not quite believing my own eyes.

When there was no response, I tried her name again, more forcefully this time and stretching out my senses in search of her familiar, comforting chakra. But just as she had with the warriors, I drew a blank.

Emiko was gone too.

She was gone, and I was now completely, totally and utterly alone.

**To Be Continued…**

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**A/N: **So, my wonderful readers, this is it!

I am definitely going to do a sequel, I'm not so mean as to leave you on such a cliff hanger, although I'm not sure when the sequel is going to be posted. I will make an update on this story when I start it though so you'll all be notified. I'm nice like that.

Honestly though, I've loved writing this story and I can't wait to continue it, but for now I want to try and finish a few of my others and sort out some real life uni work that I should have been working on while writing this!

Once again, if you could all be so kind as to vote if you liked this story, search www dot inkitt dot com slash fandom2 – scroll down and you'll see it.

See you in the future… You've all been amazing :)


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